Croft tourism throws lifeline to struggling farms

THE chances are there will be dodgy weather, a surplus of midges and a lack of night life. But the historic network of crofts that date back more than a century are to be marketed as an “authentic” taste of Scotland.

The Scottish Crofters’ Federation (SCF) is planning to lure holidaymakers to the crofting counties – which run from the far north of Shetland, down through the Highlands and Islands to the Cumbraes and Arran – by highlighting the solitude that can be enjoyed and the opportunity to learn about the history and culture of the crofting lifestyle.

While the number of crofts – small agricultural units of around 5 hectares which are usually rented – has increased from approximately 17,000 three years ago to just over 18,000, the majority of Scotland’s estimated 11,500 crofters cannot make a full-time living from their land and many have a variety of jobs ranging from teaching to driving lorries to supplement income.

“Croft tourism” is being seen as an ideal way to bring money directly to rural economies and help fight depopulation. The push follows market research showing almost 80 per cent of people in Scotland had heard of crofting with 33 per cent saying they were more likely to take a holiday promoted as crofting.

Appetites have also been whetted by television reality programmes such as BBC2’s Monty Halls Great Escape where viewers were offered a taste of crofting life in Applecross and the BBC documentary Castaway filmed on the Hebridean island of Taransay.

Russell Smith, chairman of the Caithness and East Sutherland branch of the SCF, whose wife Evelyn’s croft has been in the family for more than 100 years, said croft holidays “ticked all the right boxes”.

“Offering a holiday in a croft is catching a lot of current trends – local foods, sustainability, they are ecologically sound. There’s lots of outdoor activity and people can do things like hill walking, mountain biking and enjoy the wildlife.

“I tell tourists it’s a patch of land that’s a base for doing other things which enable you to live in the area. They get to understand crofting is worthwhile and because it’s worthwhile it is worth supporting.”

Dave Robertson and his wife Margaret from Grangemouth, who have taken croft holidays at Smith’s croft for the past 15 years, said: “We’ve learned about the history of crofters, about who lived here. My wife is especially keen on astronomy and there is a terrific view of the sky because there are no street lights. We’d like to think we’re helping keeping the life going, even in a small way.”

Jim Hunter, Emeritus Professor of history at the University of the Highlands and Islands said: “I would certainly be supportive of this idea. I think a lot of people, including government and policy makers are confused about what a croft is and see it as a ‘farm which hasn’t quite made it’.

“But the advantage of crofting is that it has kept many more people on the land than large scale farming. If you look at land turned over to hill farms it will be lucky to sustain even a couple of farms in this economic climate instead of hundreds.

“If folk get a taste for the lifestyle it might be the stepping stone to them trying to get a croft.”