Podcast serves food and farming home school ideas

WHILE teachers may be starting to prepare their classrooms this month for the anticipated return of pupils in August, one podcast is giving parents some food- and farming-related home schooling ideas. Rural podcast “OnFARM” has teamed up with the Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET) to produce the advice for parents and teachers. The latest episode…

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Glenkinchie is all abuzz as distillery installs beehives

THREE bee hives have been placed in the gardens surrounding Glenkinchie distillery near Pencaitland in East Lothian as the whisky producer gears up to make its own honey. Hoods Honey, based in nearby Ormiston, has installed the hives, each of which will house around 65,000 bees during July’s peak pollen-gathering weeks. Glenkinchie’s honey will be…

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Edinburgh Gin says ‘thank you’ to communities

EDINBURGH Gin wants to hear about communities that have been carrying out good deeds during lockdown – and the winners will receive a “neighbourhood packs” containing cans of its new raspberry gin fizz, a mix of sparking wine and  raspberry liqueur. The limited edition packs of 24 cans are designed to reward neighbours who have…

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Craft distilleries call for clarity on covid support

EIGHT of Scotland’s craft distillers have written to the Scottish Government seeking clarity on whether they qualify for support during the coronavirus pandemic. The group of spirit producers said that some of its members have been turned down by their local councils for the 12 month business rate holiday promised by Scottish ministers, while others…

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Glasgow artists turn tattie display into community food project

ARTISTS Angus Farquhar and Rudy Kanhye have turned what was intended as a display at the SWG3 complex in Glasgow into a community food project. As part of “An Empty Gunny Bag Cannot Stand”, 120 brightly-coloured hessian sacks have been distributed around the area, allowing households to grow potatoes on their doorsteps. The bilingual title…

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Blair residents develop taste for oysters

IT MAY be nowhere near the sea, but residents in Blairgowrie have developed a taste for oysters thanks to their new fishmonger. Restaurateur Willie Little, who runs Little’s Restaurant in a converted church over the bridge in Rattray, opened Fish in Blair in premises that were previously home to the Wellmeadow restaurant. Little, who also…

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Hive of activity as World Bee Day takes flight

Perthshire is all abuzz for World Bee Day, with Kinross-based Webster Honey placing more than 100 new hives at sites including Crieff, Dunning and the Strathallan Estate. As well as producing honey, the hives will be used in beekeeping workshops for schools and nurseries once they reopen, and to give businesses sponsorship opportunities. Meik Molitor,…

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Chefs call for ‘Covid code’ to give consumers confidence

Cooking stars including Nick Nairn, Tom Kitchin and Carina Contini have called for a “Covid code” to be put in place to reassure the public that restaurants have taken specific steps to keep guests safe. A group of chefs has written to the First Minister calling on her government to give nervous consumers the reassurance…

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Furloughed foodies flock to support local food and drink

More than 3,500 people have supported Scottish food and drink businesses by searching for produce in the supportlocal.scot online directory during lockdown, according to the latest figures. Nearly 300 suppliers are promoting their wares through the website, which was created by industry body Scotland Food & Drink. Demand for Scottish produce has risen during the…

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Five-star barbequing

With the weather predicted to be almost Mediterranean in coming days, we spoke to three of Scotland’s leading BBQ experts to get their tips for how to make the most of the sunshine for some al fresco eating.

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