A farm walk at SRUC Crianlarich, for Scottish beef and sheep farmers exploring on-farm monitoring, and farm-led innovation in beef & sheep.

At a glance

🔬 Discover practical, accessible monitoring approaches for hill and upland farm systems — LoRaWAN sensor networks, remote monitoring tools and EID systems being used to support decision-making in mountainous areas

🏔️ Walk SRUC's long-term hill farm research centre at Crianlarich and see how formal research connects to the questions you're already asking on your own farm

📊 Build confidence in generating and using your own farm data — and understand how sharing it contributes to the localised evidence base Scotland's farming sector needs

🤝 Connect with other farmers, researchers and advisors and explore what a farmer-led monitoring network could look like in practice

Scottish farmers are ready to act on climate resilience — but consistently tell us they need better tools, better data, and better connections between what research knows and what works on the ground. This farm walk at SRUC's Hill and Mountain Research Centre in Crianlarich is designed to bridge exactly that gap.

This summer farm walk is part of the Land, Livestock & Livelihoods: Taking Charge of Change programme, funded by the Scottish Government's Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund (KTIF) and delivered by Pasture for Life.

The event brings together farmers, researchers and advisors to explore what farmer-led innovation looks like in practice — and how on-farm monitoring, when connected to research expertise and peer networks, becomes one of the most powerful tools available to a resilient farm business.

What we'll cover

What farmer-led innovation means in practice — how to frame a question, design a simple trial, collect reliable data and act on what you find

Monitoring approaches for hill and upland systems — soil health, pasture condition, livestock performance and biodiversity, all demonstrated on the ground at SRUC

Precision livestock farming technology in upland settings — LoRaWAN sensor networks, remote monitoring tools and EID systems being used to support decision-making in mountainous areas

How SRUC's long-term research at Crianlarich connects to the management challenges you face day to day

The concept of a farmer-led monitoring network — a group of farms collecting comparable data on shared questions to build the localised, place-based evidence base that no single farm or research programme can produce alone

About the venue

SRUC's Hill and Mountain Research Centre is based at Kirkton and Auchtertyre Farms — a 2,200-hectare estate near Crianlarich in the west Highlands of Scotland, situated within the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. The site ranges from productive low ground to high altitude semi-natural habitats exceeding 1,000 metres above sea level. SRUC is a LEAF Innovation Centre and a member of the Global Farm Platform initiative, and its research at Crianlarich spans precision livestock farming, remote sensor networks, genetic selection for mountain flocks, and biodiversity enhancement within working farm systems.

Who is this for?

Beef and sheep farmers, crofters and farm managers in central and west Scotland managing extensive or semi-extensive grazing systems and interested in developing and implementing their own monitoring practice. Also relevant to advisors, researchers and extension professionals with an interest in farmer-led knowledge generation.

Format

Half to full day in-person farm walk with facilitated discussion. Lunch provided. Arrival at 1pm, with the session closing no later than 4.30pm.

This event is free to attend and is part of a wider programme of knowledge exchange events for Scottish livestock farmers. Places are limited — register early to avoid disappointment.

This event is funded by the Scottish Government's Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund (KTIF) and delivered by Pasture for Life as part of the Land, Livestock & Livelihoods: Taking Charge of Change programme.

Description supplied by the event organiser.