Have had a great day in Scotland. Hosted and entertained by the Nuffields scholars of Scotland. Went to a business , yesterday that processes game, shot by the "Gentry" or those who can afford the sport. He processes 6000 birds a day. this might be pigeon grouse or pheasant. He also does other game like venison. Most amazing though is Hare. Who would eat that.?Must tell my boys, next shoot they do, not to feed it to the dogs!!!!!! This visit brought up the convesrsation of how the community perceives this industry. In the UK there are paid game keepers, and farmers don't crop up to the fences/hedges as they leave a band of grassland for the game. They get paid to keep the animals fed in the harsh winter to be shot in the spring/summer. The response I got upon questioning this was; - people feel a sense of disconnect with the land and this provides a way of "getting back to nature". I find this a little ironic but good. What I'm thinking is that we both have a urban/ rural disconnect but In Australia due to the vast distances we also have a geographical disconnect. This is not the case here as villages are within eye shot of everywhere. Remember too the animals are out of eyeshot a lot of the time and housed indoors where the community don't see them like in Australia. (Yesterday I saw dairy cows grazing and it is a beustiful sight.) However we both have a demographic disconnect whereby all of the western countries have a gap between what goes on on farm and what is understood by the modern farming of today. The Uk farmer believes they struggle with the widening gap of the community around them. I reckon in Australia due to the geographic issues we have a double wammy.
Have had a little time this morning for breaky before hitting the road again.
I am staying with A Scottish family tonight so will share more on Scotland tomorrow
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