Agricultural weather advisory panel established
A new weather advisory panel for the agricultural sector has been announced by Rural Secretary Fergus Ewing.
When triggered, the panel will act as a taskforce for rapidly sharing information, best practice and encouraging co-operation across industry to help farmers and crofters respond effectively to challenging weather conditions, both in the short term and in building longer term resilience.
Announcing the establishment of the group at AgriScot, Mr Ewing said:
“Many parts of Scotland have experienced extremely challenging weather conditions this year, which continues to cause considerable problems for farmers and crofters.
“Certain areas have seen the wettest weather for 80 years, resulting in animals being brought indoors earlier than normal, shortages of silage, and issues related to complying with slurry spreading regulations.
“As such, I am pleased to be establishing an agricultural Weather Advisory Panel, which will bring together experts from across industry and government to promote best practice and act as an additional source of practical advice and possible solutions, and I look forward to working with the panel moving forward.”
Background
Initial membership of the agriculture weather advisory panel is listed below. It is anticipated that additional members with the appropriate expertise will be sought as and when required.
- NFUS
- Environment Link
- SRUC
- Clearing Banks*
- Agricultural Industries Confederation
- Met Office
- SEPA
- RSABI
- Scottish Government
Published on: 16 November, 2017