Flock around fun: the Royal Highland Show gears up for some star sheep
The Golden Shears World Sheep Shearing & Woolhandling Championships is returning to the Royal Highland Show in June after 20 years.
Held in the MacRobert Theatre, more than 35 countries from across the world will battle it out to see who is the fastest sheep shearer and who has the best woolhandling technique.
The highly-anticipated event will feature 39 decorated sheep sculptures that are currently on tour across Scotland in the Flock to the Show public art trail.
The Scotsman is the media partner for both events and the Royal Highland Show is held from 22 to 25 June.
Visit the website at royalhighlandshow.org
Meet the artist
Isle of Mull-based artist Emma Mckie has been honing her skills in painting and printmaking for the past several years. Originally studying fashion design at Heriot Watt University, Emma blended her design skills with her passion for the nature surrounding her island home.
She specialises in gouache and watercolour paintings of sea life on vintage Admiralty charts. She uses screen-print and lino cutting in her printmaking, creating bold designs.
Emma said: “Since the Stone Age, wool has been one of the most effective forms of all-weather protection known to mankind. It breathes, isolates, and keeps off moisture, and is temperature-regulating and self-cleaning.
“Unfortunately the mass production of synthetic fibres and fast fashion has caused the demand for natural wool to plummet. Most farmers now face paying more to have the fleece sheared than they make selling it. So my design is to celebrate where real wool comes from.”
Rainbow
Rainbow by Emma McKie highlights how Scottish farmers are utilising a range of strategies and technologies to improve efficiency and overcome challenges.
Scotland’s cool, wet climate can make it challenging to grow certain crops and can increase the risk of pests and disease. Climate change is also leading to more extreme weather, which can damage crops and reduce yields. Maintaining healthy soils is essential for crop productivity and quality, but this can be challenging in Scotland’s often acidic and nutrient-poor soils.
The damp climate and large amount of arable land can lead to increased pest and disease pressure on crops, requiring careful monitoring. To overcome these challenges, Scottish farmers are adopting a range of strategies, including the use of new technologies to improve efficiency and yield, diversification of crops to reduce risk, investment in soil health, and engagement with consumers to better understand market demands.
Meet the sponsor
Bell Ingram is a multi-disciplinary firm of land and property specialists with offices across Scotland and northern England, specialising in rural land management, forestry, utilities, architecture and residential property sales with a growing presence in renewable energy.
Supporting the Scottish farming industry is integral to Bell Ingram’s rural land management work and, with many team members from agricultural backgrounds, sponsorship of Flock to the Show was an obvious choice.
They added: “As land managers we help rural Scotland thrive and it is vitally important to build awareness around how precious land is as a resource, be it for food production, natural capital solutions, renewable energy sources and the contribution to the wellbeing economy.”
Find your fleece
Locate today’s sheep and access our VIP competition to win free parking, hospitality, and lots more by following this link.