Background

Future Proofing Scotland’s Farming is delivered by Soil Association Scotland in partnership with Quality Meat Scotland (QMS), with support from the National Farmers Union of Scotland (NFUS) and SAOS Ltd. The programme has been awarded three-year funding through the Scottish Government and Scottish Rural Development Plan (SRDP) with an industry contribution from QMS. The aim of the programme is to help farmers and other land managers:

• Minimise the negative impacts of climate change and capitalise on opportunities through appropriate adaptation measures;
• Implement practical measures to cut on-farm greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and reduce dependence on expensive inputs;
• Create sustainable and profitable agricultural enterprises based on low carbon principles.

The programme has been designed to support the implementation of priority measures set out in key Scottish Government policies and strategies including Scottish Rural Development Plan 2007-2013, Climate Change Delivery Plan and Climate Change Adaptation Framework.

In addition, the programme’s content reflects recent Scottish Government investment in a range of initiatives including recommendations for improving the use of farm-based greenhouse gas accounting tools, and research into identifying opportunities to reduce the carbon footprint associated with the Scottish dairy supply chain. The programme also reflects the economic importance of the livestock sector, and the significant role it has to play in reducing GHG emissions.