Continuation of bull hire scheme welcomed

THERE was a welcome yesterday from Patrick Krause, the chief executive of the Scottish Crofting Foundation, to the news that the Scottish Government has decided to continue with the bull hire scheme for crofters.

Krause said: "This is welcome news. The scheme has been an important factor in crofters producing top-quality calves."

His comments echoed those of environment minister Roseanna Cunningham, who said that the best way to ensure the continued quality of livestock coming out of the crofting communities was to carry on with the scheme.

The crofting bull hire scheme has operated for the past 110 years, but has recently come under threat of closure.

Looking to the future, Cunningham said she still wished to see community-run studs – but the review group looking into the hire scheme had concluded this was not practicable in the short term for a number of reasons.

"Nevertheless, my long-term view remains that communities should provide this facility for themselves," she said.

"Community groups should start to build their own capacity with a view to running studs where bulls are needed most."

But there was no timescale attached to this shift to community ownership – and in fact the government intends upgrading the bull stud facilities at Knocknagael and Balrobert, near Inverness, spending upwards of 1 million in the process.

To fund this, land will be sold from the farms, retaining only sufficient to produce winter forage for the bulls.

Between 2006 and 2008, on average, 120 bulls were hired to about 450 participants in 106 crofting townships. These bulls served 4,083 cows in 2008, out of a total of 28,315 cows held on crofts, representing 14 per cent of crofters' cows.

The scheme operates with a 60 per cent subsidy on the cost of the bulls under the Crofters Cattle Quality Improvement Scheme, which was introduced in 2005.