Episode 4 Landward

If it's going on in the Scottish countryside,

we'll know about it and we'll share it with you, it's Landward time.

Hello, and a very warm welcome to Landward from the banks of

Loch Achray in The Trossachs.

Shortly I'll have the first of three films looking at the

changes Scotland's farmers may have to make when we come out of the EU.

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

-Let's go.

-Euan's on the lookout for grouse.

He's on point.

-Good girl. Sit.

-Another native dog breed goes under the spotlight.

Sit. They can be a little bit stubborn.

And we discover how life with a visual impairment isn't

a bar to enjoying the great outdoors.

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

Whoo!

But first, the recent unseasonal cold snap brought freezing

temperatures along with strong winds and snow.

Conditions like this can be tough on livestock...

..as Landward regular Joyce Campbell shared on Facebook.

We popped back to her sheep farm in Sutherland to find out more.

We had a terrible, terrible storm.

It was cold beforehand and afterwards but two days of

solid white-out conditions throughout the day.

And then you'd get a break in it so it was just hard work,

really tough going.

My main question every time I came back to the shed was,

"How many pens have we got left?"

Because all we were doing was keeping them inside until we

could see the weather was going to fair up on the Wednesday.

So it was really important to keep them in pens and keep them

secure as long as we could inside.

Thankfully, the weather broke and Joyce managed to keep her

flock safe.

Today the weather is glorious but the sheep due to lamb are

kept inside including this first-time mum.

She's just got the nose and some feet showing and she's having

contractions just now.

A seemingly straightforward birth. But the lamb needs some help.

We're going to take him into a quieter area.

And stop everyone interfering with them.

With mum and lamb getting to know each other, Joyce can put out

some of the older lambs to get a great start in the sunshine.

They go out in this and it's just like us,

they're going to be relaxed,

they're going to get their bellies full and they're going

to enjoy the sun and you will see them thriving and growing

much better in conditions like this.

The weather is key to any sheep production.

It's a good outcome.

Still a lot of work to do before we can get them to sale but

that's the real hard work done.

It's been chilly in Sutherland but the weather hasn't been

a problem for Euan out on the moors with an old friend.

-Hi, I'm Euan.

-Hi there, Euan.

-Where's your dogs?

Last year he met Luise Janniche, when,

with the help of her pointer dogs Gaia and Gollum,

she bagged a pheasant for the pot.

Sit down!

He's catching up with them again in Aberdeenshire but this time

there isn't a gun in sight.

We're on a grouse moor on a beautiful day in March.

The shooting season may be over but there's still work to do.

We're hoping to identify the number of breeding pairs,

vital information for gamekeeper Willie Souter.

This is part of grouse moor management and today we are

looking at the pairs.

In the springtime there's a window where the grouse pair up,

male and female.

Find their territory and hang around in it.

You want to know how well they've fared over the winter,

if you've had a harsh winter or wet winter you need to know

-what's the starting point.

-DOG WHINES

-Getting very excited.

-Yes.

-Why dogs then?

Why not just count them as they fly past?

Because they don't fly around much.

-Look at that face.

-I know, she's waiting.

-"What's going on?"

-"Please say my name."

-So they love it, do they?

-So just the name and she'll go?

-Yes.

-Let's go.

-Gaia.

Wow!

'Once we catch up...' Are you coming, Willie?

'..it's time to go to work.'

Luise asks one dog at a time to search or quarter the moor for

a scent.

When they get something they stop, stand and wait.

Only when Luise gives them the go-ahead do they flush out the game.

Which is duly noted by Willie.

Gaia.

WHISTLE BLARES

He's on point.

The experienced dogs make short work of getting the birds to

reveal themselves.

Until Luise decides it's time for novice Pontius to have a go.

So I'm going to give the whippersnapper a run. OK?

Is he going to shine?

-I don't think so.

-No idea. Desperate to go.

Pontius. Gone!

-Good boy.

-He looks like he's enjoyed it.

Nine months old, he's got all the muscle now and really enthusiastic.

-But lacking the subtlety...

-Oh, yeah.

He's not really sure what he's doing,

he just knows he's got to run. Good boy.

-Good boy.

-He's not exactly accomplished.

It's up to the old hands to continue the work while I catch up

with Willie.

Why is working with the dogs such a good management tool for you?

We get a very good idea of what's happening on our grouse moor

with them.

Give us a fairly even count as to what's going on in the grouse moor.

Not too much disturbance.

I could walk across this moor and probably walk past the

majority of the birds. And they would still be sitting tight.

-Cos it's heavy going, isn't it?

-Yes, very.

-Is for me anyway.

Willie specialises in walked-up grouse shooting here.

The paying guests walk across the moor shooting birds that are

put to flight by the dogs.

I employ Luise and other dog handlers to come in,

work the pointers for the guests. We shoot the bag for the day.

And that's them away happy.

This is very different to standing at

a butt and having the grouse driven towards you.

Oh, yes. We're in control of what we shoot.

If the guests are requiring a ten brace day,

we try to produce that ten brace for them.

Take them away at night, they're used.

-So it's not mass shooting?

-No mass shooting, no mass shooting.

-Very controlled.

-Cos you're not a big fan of driven grouse?

No, I prefer it with the pointers.

It's a very, very sociable way to shoot grouse.

With an estimate of 16 pairs the new season looks promising for Willie.

Luise's dogs have done their work.

How are they doing? It must be pretty tiring for them.

Yeah, they have a lot of energy.

German Wirehair Pointers will carry on. Go and go and go.

The dogs are great but what would you say to those that are

fundamentally against shooting birds?

Because this is all about killing grouse at the end of the day.

The birds that are here live a completely wild and natural life.

They're not farmed,

they don't live or are brought up in a shed from when they are chicks.

These birds are happy birds until the day they're shot.

As we've often said on this programme,

shooting is hugely controversial.

But there's something about being out on the hillside in the

early spring sunshine watching dogs doing exactly what they were

trained and bred to do that's truly impressive.

Luise's Wirehair Pointers are German.

But now it's time to continue our series on Scotland's native

dog breeds.

Today's example was also bred to work on the moors.

Magic, good girl. Sit.

-That's it. Clever girl.

-The Gordon Setter.

This is Magic. We call her Magic.

She's eight years old.

-Magic is here with Moira and she's a feisty one, Magic, I mean.

-Sit.

They can be a little bit stubborn.

Gordons are a very old Scottish breed. It's not well known at all.

Black and tan setters have been around since at least

the 17th century.

Established by the Duke of Gordon in the early 1800s,

the Gordon Setter was bred as a gun dog.

They were renowned for their working ability.

They do need a lot of exercise.

They're not a dog that would be happy with a walk round the block.

Some other breeds, they just plod along and they don't do very much.

The Gordon's always busy, always happy, always exploring,

looking for things. Sit.

They're very, very loving dogs.

Very faithful, very loyal.

Magic, come on. They need plenty of exercise, plenty of free run.

But at the same time they've got so much to give you.

So much character, so much loving.

Now, all of us love the great outdoors in this programme.

Most of us, however, tend to take for granted our ability to access

and enjoy our glorious landscape.

But what if you have a visual impairment?

We sent our very own Sam Little from the BBC Aberdeen office to

find out how Scotland is leading the way in rural disability access.

Last year I made a wee film for BBC The Social

and I was blown away by the reaction it got.

I have Usher syndrome which is a genetic condition.

I'm registered blind and I have around 40% hearing.

But as a person who loves a bit of adventure,

I'm going into the Scottish countryside to see how

accessible it is for someone like me.

-Hi, Sam.

-Hi, Steve. I'm at Loch Dunmore near Pitlochry.

I'm meeting Steve Callaghan of Access to Adventure,

a company that arranges outdoor adventure holidays for people

with disabilities.

But before we go for a walk, I have to give him my spiel.

The first thing is I have

no peripheral vision so I can't see anything around here.

What central vision I do have is pretty good.

And also if we can link arms when we're walking because I have

-no idea where we're going.

-With pleasure.

-OK, let's go.

What does this location offer, Steve?

In common with an increasing number of such sites all over

Scotland now there's been quite a lot of capital investment

so there's a really good network of trails, there's good car

parking with well-differentiated spaces for disabled people.

There's disabled loos.

With around 16% of the population having some form of disability,

accessible tourism is big business.

In 2014 the spend in Scotland was £400 million.

So how have facilities for the disabled in the outdoors

changed in recent years?

There's an awful lot going on.

Scotland actually has some superb specialists in adapted

outdoor activities.

Whether it's rock climbing, whether it's wheelchair use of the

hills, whether it's getting on the water.

Now, I like a gentle stroll in the woods as much as anyone...

..but getting on the water sounds like a lot of fun.

Providers are offering a much wider range of activities and as

someone who doesn't shy away from a challenge,

I'm here to try something new today on the River Tay.

Donas is here. He's going to take me out on...what would you call this?

It's a river ducky.

River duckys are a cross between a white-water raft and a kayak.

If you do fall out of the boat, the first thing you need to do is

-get on your back and keep your feet up, OK?

-OK.

Experienced guide Donas Jegat is going to make sure

it's both safe and fun.

We've got here a safety kayak.

Also me with a big ducky, I can come and rescue you.

So that's the safety briefing but there's one crucial task remaining.

Before I hit the water I need to take my hearing aids out.

I cannot get these wet.

And now I don't have them in I'm effectively deaf,

I can't really hear anything.

So here I go.

As I step into the ducky,

it's a heady mix of excitement and trepidation.

Donas will guide me using a combination of hand signals

and shouting really loudly.

The footage from my helmet camera has been treated to give you

some idea of how I experience things.

Yeah, I'm OK.

Hopefully see you at the end.

We take the opportunity on this calm stretch to make sure our

signals are working.

If you really shout it should work but do the tapping, as well.

As I have no peripheral vision, I really have to focus on my

paddle to check that I'm cutting the water properly.

Then, just as I'm beginning to enjoy myself, here comes some white-water.

Whoo!

Whoo! That was so much fun.

Nearly at the end of my adventure.

And we've made it to the spectacular Grandtully rapids,

the Scottish Canoe Association slalom venue.

No pressure then(!)

That was absolutely brilliant.

My feet are freezing and it was a bit scary at times but it was

such an exhilarating experience.

This is proof that the Scottish countryside is open to people

with all sorts of different needs and requirements.

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

Now, away from the white-water of Perthshire in the lush

pastures of the Borders, I'm embarking on a mission to find out

how Scotland's farmers will cope once we leave the European Union.

These are uncertain times in our history and perhaps that

uncertainty is felt strongest in the agricultural industry.

Currently, Europe provides over £530 million in subsidy to

Scottish farmers.

And that equates to a staggering 71% of the total income from farming.

So, how will Scottish farming manage in

a world with less reliance on subsidies?

The very diversity of farming and crofting means there is

no single outcome that will suit all.

But it's also true that Brexit provides some unique and

unprecedented opportunities.

Over the next few weeks we're going to be looking into three

sectors of the Scottish farming industry.

Discovering how they're currently supported, what threats and

challenges they'll face post-Brexit and how they can be supported

in the future.

This week we're focusing on beef.

-Is he smiling?

-Just about.

-Good to see you. How are you?

Jonnie Hall, NFU Scotland's Director of Policy is joining me

in my journey through the future possibilities for farming

in Scotland.

And he's upbeat about the prospects.

I'm more excited than daunted, I must admit.

We've just got to make sure we get the right deal in terms of

trade, the right deal for future support

so our farming industry can continue to produce the goods that we

need and the goods that we can sell.

Scottish farming is currently heavily reliant on subsidy.

-Are things going to have to change?

-I think so.

For a long time we've relied on CAP payments,

mainly to keep farm businesses afloat

in the face of rising costs and poor market returns.

But farming in the future has to be about farming for the market

and less about support payments.

It's calving time and Jonnie has brought

me to this beef farm near Jedburgh.

Farmer Robert Neill is looking for some help.

-Dougie, do you want to come in here and assist?

-No, you're all right.

You're fine. Got my lovely jacket on.

This cow had a leg back so it wasn't presented correctly and if we

hadn't intervened she wouldn't have managed to give birth at all so two

hours' time, three hours' time down the line the calf would have died.

So we'll assist this cow now and get the calf out.

Beef is the largest sector of Scottish agriculture,

worth £675 million per year to the Scottish economy.

This time of year, Robert can expect a new arrival almost every hour,

raising the size of his herd to over 800.

Give that calf half an hour,

three quarters of an hour and it should be up on its feet.

Even so, he still relies on thousands of pounds of subsidy

to put beef on the market at a price customers have become used to.

Beef is an expensive commodity to produce but I don't like the

word subsidy.

We pass it straight on to the consumer by producing cheap food.

That's the message we as farmers need to get out there.

Food's never been cheaper in the UK.

And if the government have a policy that they want cheap food,

we need this payment to top our production up.

-How concerned are you about the future?

-I'm not as worried as some.

I think we're going to have fantastic opportunities

going forward.

In the UK we're only 70% self-sufficient in food.

So we rely on a lot of imports.

The 14th of August every year the UK would run out of food if we

didn't import any food.

Robert thinks there's a gap in the market for more

locally-produced beef.

He's leading the way by finishing all the cattle on his farm

and selling direct to butchers supplying high-end restaurants.

Is Robert's farm a good example of how the beef sector should

-look in this country?

-I certainly think so, yeah.

It's about being forward looking,

it's about looking at what you can do and what you can make of

your assets and your enthusiasm and your investment.

And looking at opportunities.

There will be people who want a good quality product on their

plate regularly.

And they want to know where it's come from and they want to

know it's been produced to the highest animal welfare standards,

highest environmental standards and that's what we do in Scotland.

We do that really well in Scotland.

And that becomes our selling point.

Increased production can only be part of the answer.

In a post-Brexit world Robert believes consumers will have

to be prepared to pay more for quality beef.

And government may have to play its part by supporting farmers

through investment in innovation and marketing.

How do you think we can convince the Scottish public to pay extra

money for Scottish produce as opposed to

taking cheaper foreign imports?

We need to get that message out there and shout from the top

of the hills. We've got loads of green hills in Scotland

and it's a message I'm passionate about.

Our production, our welfare standards are way above

anybody else in the world in my opinion.

We need to get that message out.

That requires some investment,

that requires a commitment from government

so that everybody starts to buy into the recognised brand that we have.

The Scotch Beef brand is renowned but you can't rest on your laurels.

So, that's what potentially faces the beef industry.

Next week I'll be on an arable farm to see what threats,

challenges and opportunities Brexit brings to that sector.

Now, I'm off to meet a new addition to the Landward team who I'm

sure would know just what to do with Robert's prime Scotch beef.

Professional MasterChef winner is...

..Gary.

Last December Gary Maclean from Glasgow was crowned champion

of MasterChef: The Professionals.

-Well deserved.

-Thank you.

It's fair to say it changed the college lecturer's life.

Cheers!

He's joining the Landward team and over the next few weeks he's

going to be out and about showing us where some of his favourite

ingredients come from.

How high?

I'm catching up with him at the home he shares with his wife and

five children for a chilly spring barbecue.

-Thanks for coming.

-Not at all.

-Nice to see you.

-Nice to be here.

-In you come.

-Thanks very much.

And maybe I'll pick up some tips along the way.

We've got some burgers, some kebabs on the go.

Look at that. Very nice.

Just what you need on a braw day like today, I think.

So, Gary, MasterChef: The Professionals champion.

I imagine your life has changed quite dramatically since then.

Yeah, massively changed.

It's actually incredible the things that are going on.

I really get excited opening e-mails,

you never know what's coming next.

One of the best e-mails I ever got was Landward. So here I am.

Over the next few weeks Gary will be out and about picking some of

his favourite Scottish ingredients.

And after meeting the people who produce them,

he's going to go all al fresco and use his MasterChef skills to

rustle up something special.

I'll just flip a couple of burgers here.

Absolutely glorious lamb burgers, nice.

How are you at barbecuing? Do you do much barbecuing?

I do do a bit of barbecuing when I get the chance.

-It's a marvellous thing.

-How's your cooking skills?

Not as good as they could be, I have to say.

I know a place where we could probably improve your skills.

-I'm up for that. Can we eat some of this first?

-Yeah, I think we should.

Definitely. Here's the snow coming on.

It's actually... What is that?

When he's not travelling the world on the back of his MasterChef

victory, Gary can be found here at City of Glasgow College.

We want to saute the chicken.

So we're looking for a really nice, hot pan.

Despite his success,

he's continued to teach and he's letting me sit in as he shows

the next generation of Scotland's culinary talent how to cook.

-This is the B Group.

-Uh-huh.

-And the B stands for...

-ALL:

-Best!

Do you think when you were having this teaching experience and the

pressure that comes with it helped when you were doing MasterChef?

I think it really did, 100%.

You're standing here. You've got 20 judges, ie students in front of you.

Passionate about food and they spot in

a minute if something's not went right.

-You hear the noise?

-Yeah.

-That's a happy noise, a happy pan.

If it's not making any noise it's not doing anything.

Your ears are really important when you cook.

But so are your fingers.

This is a pivotal moment in any keen cook's life,

-to learn how to cut an onion.

-Uh-huh.

In an attempt to improve my abilities for the food van,

Gary has agreed to teach me the right way to chop an onion.

-Uh!

-Go back, go back.

-Oops.

-All the way through it.

-Oops.

When a chef's learning to use a knife they're learning the

technique and then the speed comes afterwards.

-How's that? Will I carry on?

-Yeah, there's a couple of slices in there.

Damned with faint praise.

Gary is in no rush to open his own restaurant.

He loves education as much as cooking.

And that's a big bonus for students like Natalie Reid.

-What's Gary like?

-He's really good.

He makes everything seem really easy.

He goes through it with you in a way everybody can understand.

And he's a good laugh as well.

He doesn't take everything really, really seriously all the time.

Has he changed much since he became the champion?

We don't see him as much any more cos he's always out doing

MasterChef things but other than that not really.

He's still the same.

Landward is dragging Gary away from his students again for the

next few weeks. So he can share his skills with you at home.

Surprisingly there is one aspect of his craft where I can offer

Gary some advice.

Cooking outdoors.

-What's that like?

-The biggest enemy is the wind.

As soon as you get a stove and an open flame, if it's windy at all,

it loses all the heat and boiling water can take half

an hour, even in the summer you're going to need some base layers.

You're going to need some warm clothing because it takes

a while and you'll get cold.

I'm really looking forward to getting out.

Food, the flavour changes with the environment you're in, as well.

-Take long johns.

-I will.

And you can see Gary taking on the elements when

he hits the road for the first time bringing home the bacon in Ayrshire.

And here's what else is on the next Landward.

Arlene visits the community that's bought its own petrol station.

Nobody in their right mind is going to buy

a petrol station in the countryside.

Particularly one that needs lots of repairs

and maintenance and upgrades.

We look at the future for Scotland's arable farmers outside the EU.

As long as we get a fair deal from Brexit, farmers up and down

Scotland will take on the challenge.

-Look at that. Real milk bottles.

-Real milk bottles.

I've not seen these for years.

And I help out with a traditional doorstep delivery.

How we doing? There's your paper, sir. And your milk.

I hope you can join me for that and much more at the same time

next week, Friday night, 7:30pm on BBC One Scotland.

In the meantime from all the Landward team here in

The Trossachs, thank you so much for your company.

Bye for now.