Scottish farming: Young farmer urges people to combat misinformation about agriculture by visiting farms
A young Scottish farmer has spoken about his concern over how easily misinformed posts on the internet about the agriculture sector in Scotland spread “like wildfire”, encouraging a generation of maleducated people on farming.
George Sinclair runs the 260-acre Craigie’s Farm with his family in South Queensferry, which is home to some 200 breeding ewes, Highland cows, pigs and poultry. His father John used to work as a contractor growing potatoes, while past Sinclair generations ran a dairy farm.
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Hide AdBut now, in its fifth generation in the family, the farm has a focus on self-sustainability and accommodates members of the public for tours and a space to “pick your own”, while learning about local produce.
In a bid to dispel misinformation, the 25-year-old hosts educational days at the premises for families, schools and whoever is interested in learning a bit more about farming. They sometimes welcome up to 2,500 people a day during the summer.
Mr Sinclair said: "All you need to do is pick up a phone and you can read some misinformation, which then gives you a skewed view of farming.
"I don’t blame people for seeing it. There’s a lot of misinformation spreading all over the internet like wildfire, but we need to improve how people can access better information, and that can start with encouraging people to visit farms to see what some of us are doing.”
