Small Producers Pilot Fund Steering Group

Overview

The Small Producers Pilot Fund Steering Group has been set up by the Scottish Government to contribute to our Vision for Agriculture, our Good Food Nation ambitions, and Local Food Strategy.

The group is industry led and works in partnership with Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society (SAOS) as well as other agriculture, small holding and food industry stakeholders.

The groups aims are:

• create more localised supply chains
• enhance producer value
• cut food miles
• work with small scale producers, businesses and food production

The Fund will help individual small producers increase their resilience, enhance their contribution to the rural economy and become more sustainable.

We are designing a flexible approach to funding, in partnership with SAOS. This approach will help support local food supply chains, improve access to training opportunities and help link together small producers into existing abattoirs.

The fund replaces the Small Farm Grant Scheme which closed in November 2022.

The first meeting of the steering group took placed on 28 March 2023. It meets every month.

Members

• Helen Glass – Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society (SAOS) (CHAIR) 
• David Michie – National Farmers Union Scotland (NFUS)
• Ceri Ritchie – Scotland’s Rural University College (SRUC) 
• Donald MacKinnon – Scottish Crofting Federation (SCF)
• David McKay – Soil Association Scotland (SAS)
• Rosemary Champion – Rare Breeds Survival Trust (RBST)
• Martin Beard - Smallholding Scotland (SS)
• Diana Garduño Jiménez – Nourish Scotland (NS)
• Adam Forrest – Scotland Food and Drink (SFD)
• Fiona Richmond – Scotland Food and Drink (SFD)
• Liz Barron-Majerik – Lantra Scotland
• Justin Orde – South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE)
• Debs Roberts – Scottish Organic Producers Association (SOPA)
• Tara Wight - Land Workers Alliance (LWA)
• Scott Walker - Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers (SAMW)
• Rep from Nature Friendly Farming Network (NFFN)
• Abi Mordin - Hidden Veg and Propagate
• Flora Corbett (Isle of Mull)
• Archie Hipwell (Wester Cockairney, Kinross)
• Jo Hunt (Knockfarrel Produce)

Publications

Small Producers Pilot Fund Steering Group: terms of reference