Veteran Cameron brings farming to the people for £1m

Prominent Fife farmer, John Cameron, a former president of NFU Scotland, has invested a million pounds through his family trust in two massive buildings on his Balbuthie Farm at Kilconquhar to promote farming and food production to the general public.

Fife farmer, John Cameron

More than 200 visitors viewed the two buildings at an open day held by the Scottish Hereford Club on the farm on Sunday when it was also revealed that the 40-cow Baldinnie Hereford herd, owned by Cameron’s wife, Margaret, had won the club’s annual Scottish Herd of the Year award.

Cameron said he had been motivated to create the new facility because he felt the farming industry – and he himself during his long life of public service – had not done enough over the years to build a better relationship between farmers and consumers.

“The need for consumers to have a better understanding of how their food is produced will be even more important in the future as the emphasis in agricultural policy moves from food production to climate change, environmental protection and biodiversity,” he said.

“The agricultural vote counts for very little in the eyes of politicians but if we can get the general public behind us by creating a better understanding of the importance of home food production, it will give us a stronger voice in promoting the industry’s interests.”

Cameron is planning to open up his all-grass farm to the general public to view his herd of 150 Simmental x Luing beef suckler cows and their progeny, and his wife’s Hereford herd. The one-time largest sheep farmer in Europe, when he had seven farms in Fife and Perthshire, is also planning, at the age of 82, to re-establish a sheep flock on the farm.

Visitors will be able to view the farm individually or in groups, free of charge, and will be conducted on a tour of the farm by experienced guides. Meeting facilities will also be available free of charge to agricultural organisations.

The original development was planned as a themed tourist attraction but was turned down by Fife Council. But Cameron decided to go ahead anyway under agricultural legislation which is not subject to planning permission.

His initiative has the backing of the East Fife Local Tourist Association and his MSP, Willie Rennie, who is about to stand down as leader of the Liberal group in the Scottish Parliament. He is looking to Fife Council to have a change of heart and grant him change of use to create an alternative attraction of a railway museum for two historic steam engines which he owns and which he feels will be a great tourist attraction.

In the days of steam trains, the Union of South Africa ran on the east coast line from Aberdeen to London while the Great Marquis operated on the West Highland line from Glasgow to Mallaig.

Cameron, a steam train enthusiast for 40 years, is a former chairman of Scotrail and served on the nationalised British Railway board in London. He still holds a train driver’s licence.