And just like that, we're over halfway through the shortest month. February may be the shortest month but it has been a particularly busy - and blustery one.
We hope you've been unaffected by storms Dudley, Eunice and Franklin. Fingers crossed we have a bit of a break before Gladys, Herman and Imani pay us a visit! (If you want to suggest storm names for future consideration, send an email to nameourstorms@metoffice.gov.uk)
Just for fun, let's put your general knowledge to a 'short' test...
(Answers at the foot of the page)
News
Caledonian Marts Ltd is set to continue its recent round of investment and expansion. Phase 3 of a capital expenditure programme – which included £250k of investment in market facilities and improvements – has recently been completed. Further investment in new staff is now planned, to handle increasing throughput in both livestock and plant auctions at the firms Stirling Auction Centre. Read more here.
The National litter and flytipping strategy consultation, which was drafted in partnership with Zero Waste Scotland, Keep Scotland Beautiful and Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), is seeking views on the aims, objectives and actions that will sit under, the new National Litter and Flytipping Strategy for Scotland. The consultation closes on 31 Mar 2022.
February saw the soft launch of the OnFARM Academy which aims to deliver short, online training courses which will help rural businesses to up-skill, boost their audience and widen interest in their brand. We have teamed up with NFU Scotland, Women in Agriculture, Borders Machinery Ring, EquiScotia & SAOS who will offer exclusive discounts to their members.
'Social Prescribing' is designed to support people's wellbeing through non-clinical means. Following the success of their award-winning, heritage-based initiative, the University of Edinburgh is looking for members of the farming community to join their trial of a bespoke 'Farmers Take 30 Together Virtual', running every Wednesday evening through March 2022. You can see the pilot programme here. To register for the pilot programme, please complete the contact form found here.
A special awards ceremony was live-streamed to showcase the latest AgriScot crop of farms of the year and competition award winners including:
AgriScot returns in its original, in-person format on Wednesday 16th November 2022 at the Royal Highland Centre. If you can't wait till then, you might be interested in our latest OnFARM Podcast episode which, in a bid to help fill the void left by the absence of an in-person AgriScot, takes the form of a wide-ranging blether with former Aldi executive Marion MacCormick, SAOS vice-chair Rory Christie, The Sheep Game YouTuber Cammie Wilson, and Berwickshire arable farmer Neil White.
Earlier this month, Anna met with stars of This Farming Life, Joanna MacGregor and Donald Fraser and heard about their efforts to open a farm shop at Farm Ness, outside Inverness.
In an inspirational episode sponsored by Fearn Farm Holiday Cottages, we heard from Paralympian Sammi Kinghorn and Bruce Aitchison on DoddieAid 2022.
Anna caught up with Lynn Cassells who together with Sandra Baer took on the semi-derelict Lynbreck Croft in the Cairngorm National Park in 2016 with a dream of living closer to the land.
You can catch up on all OnFARM episodes here: podfollow.com/onfarm
March dates for your social promotions:
2 March - Royal Northern Spring Show*
5 March - National Stallion Show*
3 March – World Book Day is a great opportunity to include the whole team, discuss favourite books and share #shelfies on Instagram!
7 – 11 March - Scottish Apprenticeships Week & National Careers Week 2021 - You can use both #ScotAppWeek22 and #NCW2022 to highlight how your business is backing talent. Why not create a TikTok featuring your apprentices or host a Zoom career event?
8 March - International Women's Day - the theme for #IWD2022 is #BreakTheBias. Hosting an International Women's Day event or looking to amplify your organisation's commitment via Twitter? Download some #BreakTheBias Selfie Cards here.
11 – 20 March - During British Science Week, share how you or your team are #SmashingSterotypes. More info at https://www.britishscienceweek.org/
21 March - World Poetry Day
23 March - the Spring Budget is announced
27 March - clocks go forward (at 1. a.m.)
* Always check with organisers before travelling to an event. With your help, we'd like to put together a listing of 2022 Scottish rural events and county shows. If you know of any events that are going ahead, please send us the details and we'll include them in our monthly round-up.
'Short' Quiz Answers:
Anna Davies: Email: anna@sceneandherdpr.co.uk
Ross (Monty) Montague: Email: monty@sceneandherdpr.co.uk
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