Spells of decent weather and advances in plant breeding is making growing maize a more viable option in Scotland, according to Ben Lowe of Agrii, who was speaking at one of AgriScot’s seminars this week.

Growers particularly in the Borders and south-west of Scotland have seen success this year, despite a challenging year, he says:

“A lot has changed over the last 5-10 years and there’s a chance to try something new. The climatic changes and the advances in genetics is making maize a great alternative for homegrown forage in Scotland, and there’s real opportunity here. Maize is not currently part of the main conversation but it will suit some systems very well. The growers we know in Scotland are planning to double their acreage this year.”

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Maize has been grown in the UK for about 40 years, but only 1-2% of UK maize is grown in Scotland, says Mr Lowe, but he anticipates this will increase as farmers in Scotland look at input costs and to improve livestock performance and milk yield from homegrown forage. It can also be good in the rotation.

Mr Lowe encourages new growers to move away from conventional growing under plastic, which has advantages from both a cost and from an environmental point of view.

In a grain market outlook, AHDB and Boorsmalt gave an update on market and consumer trends which are seeing a drop in drinkers in the younger generation and a shift to more off trade drinking away from pubs and more at home, a fallout of Covid. After many years of expansion for distilleries, Charles Tozer of Boorsmalt noted a slight pull back as distillers focus on managing their carbon footprint. Boorsmalt bought and paid for its first reduced carbon malting barley this year.

“Overcoming environmental challenges and what does that cost is an ongoing debate up and down the supply chain,” said Mr Tozer.

As part of the same seminar, Managing Director Teresa Dougall of Scottish Quality Crops (SQC) explained the role and aims of the assurance body and its relevance as markets change.

“SQC is there to support growers to access the widest markets available and collaboration between growers, supply chains, processors and assurance bodies is vital to ensure that the standards benefit everyone involved.”

Following on from the First Minister’s seminar with NFU Scotland, which talked about the future of funding and the impact of the budget on succession in farming, Finance for Farms gave an insight into alternative finance options and how finance can be used to invest in different ways.