OK so I’ve decided if I actually plan on shooting my Christmas goose, I should probably start trying now.  As Christmas is fast approaching, I’ve been in denial about the task ahead.  But, Friday is the day and I’m going to give it a go.  Have to say, I’m pretty scared at the prospect of shooting a gun for the first time but surely it can’t be that hard?  Hmm we’ll see!  I’ll keep my fingers-crossed that it won’t be raining – don’t really fancy sitting out in the rain waiting for some geese and most likely failing to shoot or shoot anywhere near one of them.  Watch this space.. I’ll be sure to write an epic after Friday’s ordeal.

p.s. does anyone know any good recipes for goose at Christmas time?  (wishful thinking perhaps but I should probably consider how I’m going to cook the quacking bird!)

I realise that shooting something is going to be a task in itself, firstly I have to learn how to fire a shotgun (this part kind of scares me), and then I actually have to hit my target which will hopefully not take longer than the three weeks holiday I’m having at home.  My chosen target will be a greylag goose, as my father goes out shooting them regularly due to their over-population and general nusiance on the farm.  I’m also interested to see how Bob the dog goes to fetch the geese once they’ve been shot. 

So how does one prepare for her first time shooting?  Surely a shopping trip is in order, although I’m certainly not going to appear in all that tweed gear.  Let’s fact it, Stornoway is going to be cold, wet and windy so maybe some thermals would help?  I’ll ask my Dad, although I’m pretty sure he’s just going to laugh at me.  Here’s hoping this idea will be a success, otherwise I’m going to have to resort to a ‘Catch it, Kill it, Eat it’ for a fish – but somehow that just doesn’t have the same ring to it.

The Independent

HERE’S a link to my first proper published farming-related article.  I must say the amount of research I did for it was a bit obscene – I should really be writing a presentation on the environmental implications of fish-farming not my Journalism in Context scenario.  The story behind the article is as follows – my father who is an avid angler told me about the uproar amongst the wee fishermen in Stornoway over Lighthouse Caledonia’s plans for new fish-farm sites.  At first I thought, yeah what’s the big deal?  But now it makes sense that the intensive methods of fish-farming are damaging to the wild fish so here’s hoping the planning for the new sites doesn’t get granted. 

The Article.

“I think it is unacceptable that major retailers are placing foreign lamb on the shelves during the autumn months when domestic supply is plentiful. It is also disappointing to see the level of foreign beef stocked on the shelves of both Asda and Sainsbury’s.”

This definitely highlights why a supermarket ombudsman is needed in Britain; the farming industry will continue to be exploited and unsupported until action is taken to ensure a good working relationship between retailers and producers.

Farmers Guardian

Supermarket Ombudsman

“This should really be a message as much for consumers and policy makers as it is for farmers – how long can or should the production of food in the UK be expected to be undertaken at a loss?” HSBC head of agriculture, Pat Tomlinson

Perhaps now some action can be taken against corporate organisations and supermarket giants, driving the price of food down while making soaring profits for themselves. 

Farmer’s Guardian

Farmer’s Weekly

ITN.

PETER URPETH, author and writing development co-ordinator for Highlands and Islands arts agency Hi-Arts, is set to tweet out his new novel ‘Mackenzie’s Way.’  Reminiscant of traditional writing methods of publishing installments of a novel in a newspaper, Mr Urpeth plans to publish his novel tweet by tweet, despite the site’s ’140 characters per post’ restrictions.  Speaking to Hebrides News, he said: 

“My new ‘novel’ – ‘MacKenzie’s Issue’ – will be written tweet by tweet with an undertaking by me to add at least one new tweet section every day until the end is reached and the archive of tweets will remain accessible so that new readers can catch-up at any time.”

This will certainly be a challenge for Mr Urpeth, but it is a positive step forward in showing the potential usage of social networking sites such as twitter.  Perhaps it will make literature more accessible to those who don’t have enough time to spare to sit and read a book. 

Hebrides News

BBC

AFTER watching an episode of my favourite Come Dine With Me, I started thinking about this ‘organic’ phenomenon and whether people really understand the concept or is it just a fleeting fancy.  My no-nonsense dairy farming Dad always says to my Mum not to ‘waste money on organic food because it’s a con’.  I’ve always thought he was just being a grump but now I realise he was probably highlighting the fact that people are now beginning to shun non-organic food when in reality there is nothing wrong with it. 

On this particular episode of Come Dine With Me, the cook in question kept wittering on about how his food was of the highest organic quality; I mean please, non-organic food can also be good quality.  From what I understand, organic food is just food produced in a certain way without using chemicals.  However, as I posted previously this week, chemicals are needed in the form of GM (Genetically Modified) farming in order to produce enough food to feed the planet. 

In an article in today’s Farmers Guardian, the public expectations of organic food was described as ‘too high’.  The article discusses a recent reported conducted by the University of Exeter which found that expectations of organic food exceeded their production values i.e. the public put organic food on a pedastol.  Dr Matt Lobley from the University of Exeter said:

“There may be a danger of an ‘expectations gap’ developing between what is legally required of farmers to receive organic certification for their produce and what consumers expect it could deliver.”

This perception of being superior because you buy something organic really gets on my nerves, I mean surely a food should be valued on it’s quality, locality and most importantly TASTE! It seems these days that those who can afford it will buy something upon seeing the word organic without knowing naf all else about the food. 

I have decided to do a little experiment about the true costs of ‘organic food’ by comparing organic food prices with their non-organic equivalents and figuring out how much extra the average shopper is spending on something they believe to be infinitely better.

Another interesting article.

There is much controversey surrounding the topic of GM farming.  In a recent interview with The Farmers Guardian, Peter Melchett, Soil Association policy director, said:  “Consumers in the UK, and in most countries throughout the world, want to be able to buy food that doesn’t contain GM ingredients.  They feel that GM is an inherently risky technology with unknown consequences, and science supports their views.” 

This opinion is contrary to that of Mr Beddington, who at a recent global food summit said:  “Ten years ago, when GM was first started, people were understandably worried about about health and environmental impacts. But I think current regulations mean those risks are now mitigated.”

The Telegraph

The Farmers Guardian

The Daily Mail