Just 4% of Scotland farms generating renewable energy
Staff Writer |
The Chief Statistician at the Scottish Government released a range of figures for Scotland from the EU’s Farm Structure Survey.
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The results show that in Scotland about ten percent of tillage used conservation methods, and about 13 percent of land was left bare during the winter.
About three percent of broadcast manure was ploughed in straight away (which would be beneficial for the environment and crop-growth), though much of the manure was spread on grassland.
Over a quarter of farms reported diversification, the most common form being tourism.
Four percent reported generating renewable energy for the market.
One in six holdings reported that more than ten percent of their turnover came from ‘other gainful activities’ at the location.
Of holdings that bred dairy cattle, two thirds used the best available genetic information, such as Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs).
However on beef farms this was only 23 percent, and on sheep farms eight percent.
Fifty percent of ewes were mated using a home-bred ram, with less than one percent artificially inseminated.
Just under half of the cows were mated using a brought-in bull, but with 23 percent mated using artificial insemination.
In other data on the structure of farm ownership, about ninety percent of farms were run on a day-to-day basis by the occupier or a member of their family. Five percent of farms were owned by companies or institutions.
Twenty-nine percent of those managing farms were aged over 65, with a further 28 percent aged 55 to 65. Four percent were aged under 35.
Thirty percent were female, and just under one in five had completed at least two years of agricultural training.
Predominant upper-level ridging stretching from the Southwest to the southern High Plains will allow for another day of record-breaking heat across parts of Nevada and Arizona today.