Episode 3 Landward

If you want to know what's going on in the great Scottish countryside

then spend the next half an hour with us.

It's Landward time.

Hello, a very warm welcome to the programme.

This week I'll be rediscovering the joys of the simple porridge oat

as we continue our celebration of the foods

that made Scotland -

but first, here's what else is coming up on Landward.

We head to Arran,

where they're looking after the pennies and the pounds...

We reckoned a pound spent in Arran went around 13 times -

and if Arran is Scotland in miniature,

then there's a lesson for all of us there.

Euan hears about the potentially tragic consequences of loose dogs...

I got over here to see two dogs disappearing

out of the bottom of the field, and a complete massacre.

Just sheep lying everywhere.

Most of my flock was dead.

..and, if you go down to the woods today

you're in for a big surprise.

Landward new face Jean Johansson

discovers why there are half naked men in kilts in the forest.

But, before that, I'm off to the Borders to continue my search

for our lost Scottish culinary heritage.

Over the last few weeks,

I've been inspired by the classic cookbook

F Marian McNeill's The Scots Kitchen

to hunt down the simpler and healthier ingredients

used by our ancestors,

while chef Nick Nairn has been giving them a modern twist

in the Landward food van.

This week, I'm looking into a food

that's intrinsically linked into who the Scots are.

In her book, F Marian McNeill wrote that it was, "the flower of

"our soil, and through the magic cauldron, the porridge pot,

"Scottish oatmeal has been transmuted through the centuries

"into Scottish brains and brawn."

Oats - a breakfast favourite of the Broons, and a true Scottish icon.

They became a staple in Scotland

because they grow better here in our cool, damp climate than wheat -

but, ironically, in the 1920s,

Marian McNeill noted that oatmeal was being threatened by wheat flour,

something she regarded as a national disaster.

Thankfully, Scottish oats hung on,

despite that threat from refined white flour.

So I'm going to find out why they've endured for so long.

Beside the Tweed, here in Kelso,

they've been producing oats since the 12th century.

Grown locally, the raw oats are prepared in the mill.

The first stage is to get the edible part of the oat out of its skin.

Showing me the oats is another Dougie V -

mill director Dougie Veitch.

-So, Dougie, what's going on here?

-This is a gravity table.

This machine separates the shelled oats from the unshelled oats.

So, these have been shelled, have they?

Cracked for shelling, yeah, yeah.

This will now go on for cutting

and then grinding down to various grades of oatmeal.

This particular batch is going to end up in haggis.

And what other kind of stuff are you selling to?

We've got porridge, obviously - but, bakery products, oatcakes,

butchers, sundriesmen - this is where the product ends up.

-So, have you seen a real upsurge in demand for oats?

-Yeah, yeah.

The last seven, eight years have been good,

and the health benefits of oats are well-documented.

They've got high beta glucan and cholesterol-lowering properties...

-Yeah.

-..low glycaemic index.

We've got oats going into pharmaceutical,

it's going into cosmetics - sports drinks, even.

So it seems that in the 21st century

we're rediscovering what our grannies already knew -

the cheap and cheerful oat is in reality a high grade super food!

So, why do you think the humble oat has endured for so long in Scotland?

It's been a very frugal product,

but because of these health benefits, now it's became trendy.

You know, we're looking at porridge bars,

we're looking at all sorts of things,

we're mixing porridges with honey and syrups and various other things.

So, it's become a much more luxurious thing.

-It's a luxurious thing.

-Yeah.

Grown locally, cheap and very, very good for us,

the staple of the old Scots diet.

Let's see what Nick Nairn can do with Scottish oats later,

in the Landward food van.

Last week we revealed how difficult it was

for Scottish schools to serve locally produced chicken...

but for other ingredients it's much easier -

if local authorities make it a priority.

And this week, Euan is on the Isle of Arran to find out more.

Landward submitted a freedom of information request

to every council in Scotland

and asked them how much of the food they serve in their schools

comes from Scotland.

The results were interesting.

One council said it was 83%,

another one as low as 17 - and many keep no records at all.

They have no idea if their schoolchildren

are eating Scottish produce.

Many of the councils that are trying to serve local food

are members of a scheme called Food For Life,

which is run by the Soil Association...

and North Ayrshire, which includes Arran,

is one council that has achieved the very highest standard

within the scheme.

So, for starters, I'm heading to Arran Dairies,

to meet one of those local suppliers.

The milk comes in twice a week from Arran Dairy Farms.

We pump it across and then we process every day,

so it's always great to use the milk as fresh as it can be.

Alastair Dobson runs Arran Dairies.

Luxury ice cream is just one of the products

he supplies to local schools.

So just milk, cream and sugar. No vanilla flavouring in that.

And it doesn't need it. It's delicious.

But I'm curious how Alastair manages to compete

with the big corporate suppliers.

Well, we try and work in a number of ways.

We'll find solutions whatever way it is -

we'll either...we discuss with the local authority,

we'll also discuss with the incumbent major supplier -

Brakes Scotland at the moment, that is,

for our local authority here.

So sometimes we deliver direct,

sometimes we work with the wheels that are already in place,

so it's just to try and find solutions and be proactive.

As well as ice cream, Alastair supplies Arran schools with cheese.

They also use local meat, bakery products and tatties.

Alastair believes all this genuinely benefits the island economy.

We did an economic impact survey not so long ago where we reckoned

that a pound spent in Arran went around 13 times -

and, if Arran is Scotland in miniature,

then there's a lesson for all of us there.

Well, it all sounds pretty good so far,

but what about the end consumers?

-Beans?

-Yeah.

-OK, and get something off the salad bar.

There's no ice cream on the menu today, but there is pizza -

made with Arran cheese, of course -

and fresh fruit for afters.

Do you know where the cheese comes from on your pizza?

-From...milk.

-Uh-huh,

but do you know where it was produced?

-Er...here?

-It WAS produced here.

Where do you think the chips come from?

I think from farms on Arran.

Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

I think it's a good thing because they're fresher then.

-Does it taste better because it's made on Arran?

-Yeah.

Are you going to finish it?

Yeah.

We've got some high-quality produce on Arran,

and it's really great for our youngsters to experience that

on their plate day-to-day, and...

Barry Smith, head of both the primary and the high school,

thinks there are many benefits to sourcing local.

-Do you use it as part of the educational process?

-Absolutely.

You know, I think helping youngsters learn about where food comes from,

how it gets to from the field to your plate

and what the implications of that are is really important,

and we've got a number of youngsters

who are linked to farming in our community, obviously,

and it's really great that we've been able to share

that understanding through the education programme that we provide.

This trip has been a real eye-opener.

How fantastic to see children eating food

that could have been produced by their family members

or at least somebody that they know.

And, for the environment, it's great.

It's low food miles and, more importantly,

it keeps money in the local economy and stimulates growth,

and it's got to be a model that's worth looking at

in other parts of the country.

Now, from the lesser spotted McIlwraith

to some other native breeds -

dogs.

This week we're taking a peek at Scotland's largest dog -

the Scottish deerhound.

We've been using large hounds to hunt since prehistoric times,

but we can only be sure the Scottish deerhound existed

in its current form since the 18th century.

Breeder Ali Morton has brought along gentle giant Brogue.

They were bred for hunting deer, for bringing down red deer.

It was really only landowners and the barons who owned them

because commoners weren't allowed to, in case they poached.

These days now we've got ten, which is quite nice because we're commoners,

and all these years ago we wouldn't have been allowed to have them.

When they're hunting they're very focused.

When they're at home they're quite lazy, quite chilled out.

They'll take as much exercise as you can give them,

but if you look outside and it's chucking it down with rain,

they look outside and go, "Nah, you're OK just now."

Very naughty puppies.

As adults they seem to kind of get to about two, two and a half, three,

and they just calm down.

They'll chew.

I mean, they don't just chew, like, the leg of a chair -

it's a whole sofa.

If you don't kill them when their puppies,

they're actually worth hanging on to!

It's worth it in adulthood because they're so adorable.

Indeed she is.

Now, we're an increasingly dog-loving nation,

as the number of you posting pictures of your canines

on our Facebook page shows.

Thanks for doing it, we love seeing them!

But there is another side to our love affair with dogs.

Last year saw a dramatic rise

in the number of sheep being attacked by pet dogs.

Euan's been to find out more.

In 2016, there were 179 incidents

where livestock were either hurt or killed by dogs.

That's up by 46 on the previous year.

Two thirds of these incidents were attacks by dogs

that had escaped from local gardens or had been allowed to run wild.

You certainly got their attention.

That's what happened to Andrew Ireland's sheep

near Darvel in Ayrshire.

Two of his pedigree sheep died

after free-roaming dogs attacked his flock.

I just drove into the farm and saw the police van,

and two police officers talking to Dad...

-That's never a good sign, is it?

-No! I wondered what was happening.

So I got out, and we've got some grazing down next to the town.

We had 20 ewe hoggs grazing.

A neighbour in the field had phoned in,

saying there was two husky-type dogs running around the field

chasing after the sheep,

so, all credit to the police, they were there pretty promptly.

Caught the two dogs.

Let's go and have a wee look at this field anyway.

The grazing field is two and a half miles from the farm.

The huskies had attacked the sheep

after escaping from their owner's garden.

When Andrew got there that day, he was met with a devastating sight.

I came down here,

and all the sheep were packed in this faraway corner, so they were.

So, what state were they in?

Oh, they were all...

There was a good few of them lying down,

there was some on top of each other.

Five of them were wounded, three of them wounded pretty bad.

One, especially. One was terrible.

It was the worst thing I've ever seen.

Two of the sheep were so badly injured

they had to be put down,

but even the survivors were badly affected.

I saw these sheep for three times a day for the week after,

and they never come out of that corner

for...it was seven or eight days,

they never came out of the corner to graze again.

So, they had a week of pretty much not eating or drinking.

A lot of stress, and the vet had told me

when he came to see the damaged ones,

I mean, "Keep a close eye on these sheep,

"because the damage isn't just done.

"There could be a lot of problems after today."

What happened to Andrew serves as a warning

to dog owners to keep their garden or kennel secure...

..but failure to control dogs let off the leash

can also have terrible consequences.

Vogrie Country Park in Midlothian

is popular with dog owners and commercial dog walkers alike.

It sits next to Woodhead Farm, owned by Scott Brown.

He's experienced a number of issues.

The real problems started about five years ago,

and I'm convinced there is a direct correlation

between the massive increase in dog owning -

well, 300% in Midlothian in the last five years -

the massive increase we've had in dog owning,

and a number of commercial dog walking companies

that have sprung up in the last five years.

Vogrie, now, is inundated with professional walkers.

Scott rents land to Shirley Cameron, who keeps sheep on the farm.

In June last year they were attacked.

A witness called to alert her to the incident.

I got over here, ten minutes flat,

and ran down to the field to see two dogs

disappearing out the bottom of the field and a complete massacre.

Just sheep lying everywhere.

Most of my flock was dead.

15 sheep were killed.

This isn't the worst of what Shirley came across -

those pictures are too graphic to show.

-It's not nice, is it?

-It's...

You imagine coming across that in your field.

Shirley agrees with Scott that irresponsible commercial dog walkers

are part of the problem.

I'm not having a pop at commercial dog walkers,

I'm sure that the majority of them are very responsible.

It's the minority that aren't.

You walk a dog on its own, on a lead, and it's very...

it's very submissive towards you,

and it feels that you're the boss, and that is the position.

When you open a transit door, as we see,

and as has happened in this area, and 15 dogs come out of it,

that person in charge of the dogs is no way in control.

At the moment the law states that near livestock,

dogs must be kept under control.

Shirley and Scott want that changed

to say that dogs must be on a lead, and that's not all.

With regards to the dog walk industry,

we want that industry regulator.

We also want a law brought through

that states just how many dogs you can actually have under your control

at any one time, because it needs to be limited.

We're seeing dogs, as I said, in packs of 10 or 15,

and that's not acceptable.

It's not just farmers who have a stake in this -

it's a dog owners as well, because a farmer is within his rights

to shoot your dog if it's threatening livestock.

Now, while there are no official figures

about the number of dogs that are shot every year, it does happen,

so, it's in the interests of all of us to keep our dogs under control

whether at home or in the countryside.

Now, its time to introduce another new face to the Landward team -

Jean Johansson is a regular on The One Show and Animal Park,

where she's no stranger to unusual wildlife.

So that's why we've sent her to investigate

some strange woodland goings-on in Midlothian.

This is Roslin Glen,

just seven miles from Edinburgh city centre -

the birds are chirping, the flowers are in full bloom,

and I've also heard that this is the site to see

some spectacular wildlife.

(These woods are home to the lesser spotted Kilted Yogi.)

'These fine specimens

'are Dundee-based yoga instructor Finlay Wilson

'and ex-professional ice hockey player Tristan Cameron-Harper...'

-Well, hello! Fancy meeting you here.

-Oh, hi. How are you doing?

Nice to see you. Nice to meet you both.

Now, you're looking great, but what's going on here?

Well, we're filming our next Kilted Yogis video.

'..and they became a worldwide sensation almost overnight

'when they hit the internet

'with their unique blend of al fresco yoga,

'stunning landscapes, and barefaced cheek.'

How did you come up with bare chests, kilts and outdoor yoga?

Well, I think you just gave away the recipe right there!

I mean, that was the first idea that we pitched to the BBC

to get the video out there.

I wanted it to be a bit tongue-in-cheek,

I wanted to introduce, especially, the sense of humour

-I like to bring in when I teach yoga in the first place.

-Mm-hm.

So, that's exactly what this was...

..and there was always going to be a cheeky ending -

and that's what we've created!

Well, that cheeky ending has went around the world.

-I mean, did you expect it to go global?

-Not at all.

-No.

I mean, we just got back from New York this morning,

having been there with hundreds of people coming up,

taking photos with us. It's been wild.

-How many hits has it had now?

-Quite a lot.

-Yeah, we're now sitting at over, like, 55 million.

-Wow!

-I mean, that's amazing, guys. Did you ever expect that?

-Not at all.

Super overwhelming - but it's cool.

We're making so many people smile,

and getting Scotland on the map and recognised.

Yeah, what's the concept behind it?

You came up with the kilts and being out in the beautiful surroundings -

what are you trying to get from it?

We always wanted to showcase, like, Scottish environments,

and one of the reasons we chose The Hermitage

-is we've got river, waterfall, forest, mountainside.

-Mm-hm.

We had, like, all those elements there,

and we were able to showcase that

as, like, a piece of Scottish beauty.

Also, at the same time, just being out there and doing yoga

somewhere completely different - you don't need to do it at home.

Today the pair are limbering up amongst the lumber

to complete the sequel to their viral video

for BBC Scotland's The Social website with film-maker Anna Chaney.

She made the first film, and is hoping lightning will strike twice.

We make up the moves as we go along, but we have this kind of idea -

I wanted to create these characters,

and it's as if you just come into this forest and they're there,

and they're just magically doing yoga.

But, when we arrived, the two boys were like,

"Right, Anna, what do you want me to do?"

And I was like, "I don't know! I don't know yoga."

So we invented some moves and felt what it would look like,

-and played a lot with this guru feel...

-Mm-hm.

..that they were just from there, that they lived there,

and you would just find them if you walked through the forest.

Take a deep breath in, bring the arms up.

Forward bend, bend the knees, fold forwards, bringing the hands down.

It's time for Finley to show me that yoga can be done with tops on.

So, pull the left foot forward.

Ooh...!

-Yeah.

-Then bring the arms up.

I'm not as flexible as you, Finlay.

That's all right!

Finlay first encountered yoga while recovering from knee surgery,

but as he delved deeper

he discovered that yoga could fix more than just his body.

Physically, it's very much sorted you out.

What about the mental benefits of yoga?

-If I don't do yoga in the morning, you don't want to know me.

-Really?!

-So...

-It affects your mood, as well?

-Yeah, massively.

So when I do it on a daily basis, I get to do that daily reset,

I get to really unscramble my brain.

It's a really great way to start the day.

So that explains body, mind -

but what about the spirit part of it?

It's that connecting to yourself and what matters to you,

what makes your heart beat faster,

what makes you feel like you're sparkling up from the inside out.

That, to me, is what spirit means, and yoga helps me do that.

Well, I have to tell you, I'm feeling very sparkly after that.

-Maybe a bit dirty, though!

-Yeah! I need to get cleaned up now.

And you can see the Kilted Yogis with their taps aff,

as their latest video has just been released

on the BBC The Social website.

Earlier in the programme I visited a mill

on the banks of the Tweed in Kelso

to find out about Scotland's enduring superfood - oats.

I'm back in the Landward food van now,

but I'm still in historic market town Kelso

to rustle up a traditional treat

from F Marian McNeill's home-grown cookery Bible The Scots Kitchen,

for the last time.

Chef Nick Nairn will be finding out

if the Kelsonians appreciate what they have on their doorstep

by preparing a delicacy using the oats I picked up

and giving them a taste of the frugal but healthy diet

Scots used to enjoy.

What will the locals make of his crowdie and oatcakes?

Nick, I haven't had to travel particularly far.

This is the mill just across the way there...

-Indeed.

-..and we have our oats.

You could not get more quintessentially The Scots Kitchen,

and Marian McNeill, than oatcakes -

and we're going to make cheese.

-Have you ever made cheese before?

-I've never made cheese before.

-That makes two of us.

-Oh, good!

-I've never done this before.

-So, we'll be here awhile, then.

-No, no.

It's going to work. Trust me.

-Oatcakes and crowdie - Scottish cream cheese.

-Right.

It's, you know, part of our heritage.

Cranachan, nowadays, just gets made out of, with double cream...

-Yeah.

-..but in the old days, they didn't have as much double cream -

they used to make it using crowdie -

and here's how we do it.

In here we've got 500ml of milk.

I'm going to keep that up to 36 degrees centigrade.

Why 36 degrees?

Don't know.

I read a book about cheesemaking, that's what it said.

We're going to add half a teaspoon of salt

-and half a teaspoon of lemon juice...

-OK.

..and the acid in the lemon juice will help this to curdle,

and half a teaspoon of rennet, which is a complex of enzymes,

to split down the milk, break down the milk.

So, we give this a stir and we put it back on the heat

and we put it up to 42 degrees centigrade.

OK, so, what we're going to do is leave this milk

-to split and separate.

-And it will do it on its own?

I don't know, I've never done it before.

Let's hope so!

Fortunately for us, it does start to separate

into the watery whey and more solid curd.

-That's setting up hard, OK?

-Beautiful. Nice.

So, at this stage, we're going to get a sieve and a piece of muslin,

and then we pour, and we let that sit.

-So the cheese is in the muslin, there, and settling.

-Settling out.

Going to make oatcakes - have you made oatcakes before?

-I've never made oatcakes.

-Take some hot water.

To that you add some bicarb of soda,

and that's a quarter of a teaspoon of salt, and some lard.

Three teaspoons of lard. That goes in there.

OK, and when the lard is melted in the water,

we pour it into the oats and we make a dough.

OK, so that's the oatcake dough.

-You can see it's a sticky sort of texture.

-Yes.

OK, and then we roll the dough out.

So we're like a machine here, producing oatcakes...

for the delectation of the good people of Kelso.

These go into the oven for how long?

These go into the oven for 20 minutes -

but what we're going to do is we will turn them every five minutes.

But how is the cheese getting on?

That is crowdie.

-That's fresh cream cheese...

-Lovely, lovely, lovely.

..what we made, right now, in the Landward food van.

Is that not amazing?

So, if I put some on top of the oatcake which we made as well,

pop that on there, and look what I've got here.

-A ripe bit of pear, OK, and a bit of black pepper!

-Oh-ho-ho!

-OK!

-So here we go. I mean, this is as local as you can get.

-Unbelievable.

Eaten here.

-It's so creamy!

-Yeah.

The oatcake is very sort of rustic and rough, the crowdie is creamy...

It's delicious is what it is.

..and the sweetiness... the sweetness of the pear.

-The pear, just kicks in at the end.

-Oh, my goodness.

Right, let's go.

Well, I like them, but how will the home-grown oats go down

with the people of Kelso?

Would you like to try one of my home-made oatcakes,

home-made crowdie and a bit of pear?

-I definitely would, thank you very much.

-Fabulous.

Thank you.

-You waited for long enough.

-Mm!

Tastes delicious.

It's nice with the pear,

because it just sort of complements the crowdie,

because it's quite peppery.

It's for me, not you.

The oatcake is really nice and crispy.

-Delicious.

-This woman's beating you.

She's already had more than you!

-Very nice.

-Do you like it?

-Very different.

It's got a good amount of pepper on it, which I love.

Aww!

Do you want to try little bit, too?

Lovely.

That's good.

These are excellent, anyway, I must say.

How about you? Bit early for comment yet.

-It's good.

-Did you enjoy it?

-Mm-hm.

Oh, you don't like pear?!

I'm allergic to pear.

That is fantastic.

Everyone seemed to love that. Local, healthy and delicious.

Well, in Scotland we've been making oatcakes and crowdie

for hundreds of years,

and I think you and I have just proven how easy it is.

I think the Landward viewers should be giving this a go.

Make your own oatcakes with your own oats,

and make your own cream cheese.

-It's fantastic!

-Why not?

Now, that's all we've got time for this week.

Here's what's coming up next time around.

Could Brexit be the best news ever for Scotland's farmers?

Farming in the future has to be about farming for the market.

Building resilience so that we really do have

a competitive agricultural industry in Scotland.

Go.

You're not joking!

We head out on the search for elusive grouse...

Why dogs, then? Why not just count them as they're flying past?

Why...?! Because they don't fly around much.

..and we discover how Scotland's outdoors is open for all..

It's about what you can do, not what you can't.

So, join us again next week,

Friday night, 7.30pm, BBC One Scotland.

From all the Landward team here in Kelso,

-thank you so much for your company. Bye for now.

-Bye.