Cows in the Highlands

Hill Farming or Rewilding or Green Tourism ? Where are the Highlands going ?

People are certainly not keen on too much renewable infrastructure as the SSEN proposed pylon line from Beauly to Spittal has been knocked back for the moment.

There is a concerted effort from over 100 Community Councils from Dundee to Aberdeen to Beauly to Thurso calling for a pause to consider seriously the actual needs and scale of Renewable Energy production for export to the rest of the UK. At present it is ad-hoc chaos with far too many financial entities / renewable companies trying to climb on the gravy train Net Zero represents. The cost to the economy, business and the consumer never seems to be considered. Everybody knows electricity costs far too much as a result of the pursuit of Net Zero.

It is generally thought that the incoherent muddle of the new Land Reform Act will have little effect on the current structure of ownership. Especially where wind farms have increased the value of estates. The system where high net worth individuals ( from all over the world ) are willing to invest in job creation and housing is an astonishingly efficient system that spares the taxpayer.

The great debate is really whether the conservation experiment by Anders Polsen ( thesteely-eyed Viking ) and others on their perhaps as much as 500,000 acres has any long-term value. It is certainly welcomed by green enthusiasts and parts of Government that do not understand the value of traditional sporting estates to biodiversity. It also appeals to class warriors who are under the illusion that all sport is done by a privileged elite. Rewilding is certainly upsetting traditional land managers , owners and users. Reducing deer numbers to near zero and banning sheep encourages low value ( for nature ) scrub and trees to develop. I well remember the late Professor of Botany Charles Cunningham from Aberdeen University extolling the virtues of heather for nature. Burning also was essential to preserve the wide variety of flora and fauna he would say to both students and others.

The big loser is biodiversity if you destroy heather. Heather is perhaps Scotland’s most unique resource. Trashing it by planting trees is a shocking mistake and destroys a valuable habitat. Next to Polsen’s massive estates old-fashioned small parties of sportsmen no longer rent bed and breakfasts or employ self-employed stalkers and ghillies. They no longer visit the small local shops, and employees at hugely expensive hotels ( such as at Tongue ) hardly make up for the loss of local employment. As farming continues to retreat from the west and the north the landscape will inexorably change and the social structure with it. Progress ? I don’t see it like that. As a farmer in the fertile and clement Eastern Highlands I see this all as an avoidable mistake. Food and Framing Policy is missing. Food Security gets just lip service in our post-industrial society as people assume it comes from supermarkets. Jeremy Clarkson has certainly helped the image of farming but too little and too late.

There is an obvious small scale solution which would have a big effect. Cows. There is enthusiasm to see small herds of cows make a return to the Highlands. I can think of several traditional sporting estate owners and farmers who would be delighted to support this idea. There is suitable ground and the required knowledge is still there. Winter feed is easily brought in and there is little need for expensive farm buildings although some might be willing to invest if they saw a good future. All it needs is Government commitment. A simple and cheap scheme would produce great results. Why not a Highland Cow Scheme ( perhaps a few Belties and other rare breeds ) for the far north and west would give a great push to a struggling local economy. The tourists would scream with delight.