News
Falling demand signals shift in Scotland’s rural land market
Scotland’s rural land market is showing signs of cooling, with falling demand in key sectors such as commercial forestry and natural capital investment.
New analysis from the Scottish Land Commission and Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) reveals how economic and political uncertainty have reshaped rural land market activity over the past year.
Source: Business Insider
SRUC appoints new Board members
Outgoing MSP Oliver Mundell is among five new non-executive directors to have been appointed to the SRUC Board.
Mr Mundell, who will stand down as MSP for Dumfriesshire at next year’s Scottish Parliament election, will join four other new Board members as SRUC builds on its journey as a degree-awarding power institution at the heart of the natural economy.
Experts explore new marine protein to enhance poultry feed
A group of industry professionals is exploring a fishmeal alternative derived from marine sources to evaluate potential benefits for gut health and growth performance in meat chickens.
The Innovate UK initiative, ‘Farmed Marine Proteins for Poultry Feed’, assessed the viability of using Artemeal – a protein product made from artemia – as a novel replacement for fishmeal in the diets of young broilers. The aim was to monitor health outcomes, optimise growth and reduce environmental impact.
AI biosecurity tool could help save farmers time
Scientists are developing a new webtool which will use Artificial Intelligence to give time-pressured farmers tailored advice on how to protect their livestock from disease.
The device is being developed in a project by SRUC and Moredun which would quickly summarise official documentation on animal biosecurity, and deliver detail most relevant to an individual farmer’s needs at the time.
Peatlands project to tackle greenhouse gas emissions
A major new project has been launched to tackle greenhouse gas emissions from drained peatlands.
SRUC is the UK lead in the EU-funded Horizon Europe project 'Socio-Economic and Climate and Environmental Aspects of Paludiculture' (Paludi4all) – the productive use of wet and rewetted peatlands.
New vertical farm a first for Scottish education
SRUC has stepped up its commitment to global and local food production and security by becoming the first higher education institution in Scotland to open a commercial-sized vertical farm.
Jim Fairlie MSP, Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity, officially opened the £1.8 million SRUC Vertical Farming Innovation Centre – which has received £200,000 from the Scottish Government – at the Edinburgh Campus of Scotland’s Rural College.
‘Cool Calf’ could help accelerate dairy journey to net zero
Hilda may look like an ordinary calf, but the sprightly, Scotland-born animal represents an historic moment for the world’s longest-running livestock genetics project and could help accelerate the dairy industry’s journey to net zero.
Why birth of IVF calf Hilda in Scotland is being hailed as a milestone for greener farming
Vets working on a project to breed more environmentally-friendly cows have described as “hugely significant” the birth of a calf using IVF, saying it could accelerate the dairy industry’s journey to net zero.
The calf, named Hilda, is part the Dumfries-based Langhill Herd, which has been a source of data for the UK dairy industry for more than half a century.
Source: The Scotsman
Lightbulb moment for fungi scientists
Researchers from SRUC and the Empa (Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology) St Gallen, Switzerland have successfully inserted the decay fungus Desarmillaria tabescens – a white rot fungus – into balsa wood to make it glow, with the aim of producing functionality.
Degree awarding powers an historic moment for SRUC
Becoming the first Scottish education provider in almost two decades to be granted degree-awarding powers is a truly historic moment for SRUC.