Cluny Farm Walk & Talk

Join Farmstrong for a series of Walk & Talks, on Farms and Crofts across Scotland, supported by The NFU Mutual Charitable Trust. 

Come and learn about the host farm or croft business alongside informal discussions about wellbeing and of course connect with others, during the farm walk as well over a lunch or supper. The aim is to encourage farmers and crofters to take time away, to connect, learn, share food and talk about the value of wellbeing as part of the business.

Farming at Cluny is Robbie Newlands, alongside his wife Kirsty. They have three grown up daughters that are all following their own careers away from farming.

Cluny is a 462Ha tenanted up-land livestock farm carrying 180 breeding sim/saler cows all out wintered. All the calves are fattened and sold dead weight. The cows are all spring calved, starting in early march, on a 12 week block to Charolais bulls. The heifers which are all bought in, are put to a Saler bull. The calves are then all fattened on a barley beef system and sold dead weight mostly to ABP.

The farm also carries 680 mule Ewes. The lambs are usually all fattened and sold dead weight to Woodhead Bros at Turriff. Although this past year Robbie did sell 500 store to ease the numbers on the ground during the very wet autumn.

They grow around 160-170 acres of spring barley for their own use most of which is fed to the cattle through hoppers on the barley beef system. Some of the barley is fed to the lambs to finish them.

24 acres of fodder beet is also grown and used mostly for feeding to the cows overwinter. It is grown on 4 blocks with barley stubble alongside as a run back for the cows.

Away from the farm Robbie is a Director of both the Spring Show and RHASS and is on the board of North Highland Products. All of which take him away from the farm and Robbie finds this time is well spent, as encourages a wider view of farming but also for meeting and speaking to others.

Farmstrong are looking forward to welcoming you to Cluny for an afternoon tour, followed by a spread to share.