Scottish farmers used more land to grow fruit and vegetables in 2020

The amount of Scottish farmland used to grow soft fruit and vegetables increased this year.

The final results from this year’s June agricultural census show a 13% increase in the amount of land used to grow vegetables for human consumption to just under 52,000 acres.

There was a 7% rise in the amount of land used for soft fruit production, which at almost 5,500 acres is 14% higher than the 10-year average.

The final results from the census also show the acreage used to grow tatties remained steady at just under 70,000 acres, while the amount of seed potatoes grown was down 4% and the ware potatoes acreage up 2%.

The decline in cattle numbers continued – down 1% on last year to 1.71 million.

This was driven by a decrease in the number of beef cows, which are down 12% in the past decade to 413,900 in June this year.

Dairy cow numbers, on the other hand, have increased 3% in the past 10 years to 173,000 in June.

The total number of sheep increased by 1% to 6.72m, while the national pig herd increased by 6% to 338,000 pigs and poultry numbers decreased by 4% to 14.4m birds.

The area of tenanted farmland remained stable – coming in at 3.2m acres.