Thousands log in for a digital Arable Scotland

"This was only the second Arable Scotland, so it was ambitious to suddenly deliver this in a completely different way – it’s a huge credit to event partners SRUC, James Hutton Institute and AHDB with sponsors Hutchinsons, FAS, SEFARI, Scottish Society for Crop Research and The Scottish Farmer for their massive inputs""

The 2020 edition of Arable Scotland – Scotland’s newest field event focussing on arable crops - took place online on 2nd July and was very well received: hundreds of e-delegates visited the event’s Virtual Field Map on the day, and many more have caught up with the event’s webinars and online content in the days since.

In the week since it opened, Arable Scotland 2020’s Virtual Field Map has registered almost a thousand visitors from countries including the UK, US, New Zealand, India, France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Estonia, Romania, Spain, Ukraine, Belgium, Canada, Colombia, Mexico, Norway, and Poland.

The event’s page on The Farming Forum was also very successful: thousands of forum users visited posts related to alternative crops & markets and plant health, as well as Hutchinsons’ Omnia Terra Map. Dozens of virtual delegates actively took part in the webinars and Arable Conversation sessions, which featured lively discussion and participation. The content remains freely available for consultation – you can visit Arable Scotland’s 2020 Virtual Field Map to find out more.

Professor Fiona Burnett, co-chair of the event, said: “This was only the second Arable Scotland, so it was ambitious to suddenly deliver this in a completely different way – it’s a huge credit to event partners SRUC, James Hutton Institute and AHDB with sponsors Hutchinsons, FAS, SEFARI, Scottish Society for Crop Research and The Scottish Farmer for their massive inputs.

“It was a pleasure to work with this group of committed partners who were determined to deliver for the Arable Scotland audience in these difficult times. We’ve learnt a lot along the way – some people embrace and enjoy online delivery and it gave the event far greater geographic reach, global in fact, but not all of our audience find digital delivery easy to access or comfortable to engage with.

“Next year we are planning a welcome return to a field event, provisionally on 1st July 2021, but we hope to retain an element of virtual delivery – i.e. the best of both worlds!”

This year’s programme included the content below:

• Introductory videos from SEFARI, James Hutton Institute, SRUC, AHDB and the Farm Advisory Service, highlighting key actions on alternative crops and sustainable future production systems
• Webinar for New Entrants: ‘New People, New Pathways’ – drawing on input from the NEFERTITI Scottish Hub
• Guided Digital Crop Tour – A virtual tour of alternative crop trials, demonstration plots and research farms featuring SEFARI partners
• Arable Conversations: Meeting the challenges of net-zero
• Arable Conversations: Alternative markets and new product opportunities
• Arable Conversations: Plant Health – the challenges and opportunities of implementing best practice.

Plus much more from our sponsors and exhibitors; visit the event’s Virtual Field Map for details.