As the Low Impact award winner for Scotland, Alistair McBain was invited to receive his award during the Select Farm Awards ceremony on the retailer’s stand at this year’s Royal Highland Show.

The judges commended Alistair for his pioneering work in significantly reducing farm emissions through changes in diet composition.

Alistair has worked hard to reduce the environmental impact of the Aberdeenshire-based Duncan Farms’ egg enterprise by developing a diet with a 50% reduction in soy, which is associated with a high carbon footprint in egg production.

“We started looking for alternatives to soy, and at what we could grow on our land to provide a sustainable option,” Alistair explained.

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“The solution includes homegrown proteins such as beans and oil seed rape which are grown and harvested within 12 miles of our egg enterprise.

“In line with Duncan Farms’ sustainability goals and M&S’s Plan A commitment, we were determined to develop a feed mix that works in terms of palatability for the hens, egg production performance, welfare outcomes and carbon reduction.”

Head of agriculture and fisheries at M&S, Steve McLean, said: “Every day, our Select Farmers go to extraordinary lengths to deliver great quality M&S food to our customers, producing lower carbon, responsible food, whilst protecting natural resources and driving innovation.

“Alistair has demonstrated how much can be done by being innovative and using his skillset to make a significant improvement to his farm’s carbon footprint. His attitude and application should be truly admired.”

Duncan Farms, a family-run business based in Aberdeenshire recently announced a rebrand of its traceable and sustainable free-range eggs product line stocked in Morrisons stores across Scotland.

The rebrand to Duncan’s Eggs (formerly Duncan Farms eggs) can now be found on shelves and is a move to more accurately reflect the company’s commitment to sustainable farming practices and traceability.

This year alone, Duncan Farms are investing more than £10 million in the business including a new packing centre, new free-range sites on their own land and product development. Additionally, they have partnered with contract producers who are looking to build new free-range sites over the next 24 months.

Multiple key projects are also underway across Duncan Farms sites to drive continual improvements with their sustainability and increase their organic free-range production by 30% in 2024.

Duncan Farms grow and mix all their own feed for their hens which are homed across Aberdeenshire, producing over 18,000 tons of cereals annually.