A farmer and crofter-led group has formally been launched in the Highlands as frustrations continue surrounding the Cairngorms National Park Authority’s (CNPA) lack of engagement and introduction of beavers.
The new group – Cairngorms Crofters & Farmers Community – comes after almost fifty crofters and farmers within the Spey catchment came together to improve communication with the CNPA.
Farmers and crofters met with the authority’s leaders to focus on working together as a group for the promotion and enhancement of sustainable and local food production.
Crofters and farmers unite with formation of new group
Grantown-on-Spey farmer Robert MacDonald is set to chair the group alongside 11 other directors, all of which are crofters and farmers, with a membership building across the whole of the National Park.
The group will have a Cairngorms focus and intends to work closely with existing
organisations including NFUS, Scottish Crofting Federation, Scottish Tenant Farmers Association and Scottish Land & Estates.
Robert MacDonald said the establishment of the new group brings a new and powerful voice to the decision-making process in the Cairngorms National Park.
He said: “It is important for us (farmers and crofters) to find a balance between fulfilling the objectives of the park and those of the rural communities that it serves.
“We share common goals of preserving and developing biodiversity and our cultural heritage in the area, and as caretakers of the land, we need to be closely involved in
decisions made affecting the area we live and work in.
‘New and powerful voice to decision making’ says chair Robert MacDonald
“We are already seeing the benefits of the group in the knowledge and information sharing between members, and combined with discussions with the park authority, it will be of benefit of all in the Cairngorms community.”
Laggan farmer Lucy Grant, who is vice-chair, added: “The voice of the local rural community has the potential to change negative perceptions of the National Park but they need to ensure they are listening and not just offering lip service to those who have been managing the land for generations.
“On a fraction of the National Park budget dedicated to agriculture, this group
has the ability to deliver not just many of the aims of the Park and the Scottish Government but also the needs of the people living and visiting here by providing high quality food, high quality wildlife and high-quality landscapes.
“It is important to acknowledge that agriculture is core to our rural economy and well-being.”
While negotiations are still underway regarding the implications of the released beavers and the impact they may have on farming, the capability of the group is already in evidence with discussions leading to substantial improvements in the Upper Spey Beaver Management and Mitigation Plan.
Beaver introduction highlighted by group
The group has also successfully requested the set-up of a Beaver Management Group to include farmer and land manager input.
Other early positive steps have been the rekindling of a Farmers’ Forum and the setting-up of an agricultural advisory panel by the Park Authority to enable agricultural practitioners, researchers and policy-influencers to feed into Park plans.
