Dairy farming in Scotland is a challenging industry. Whether it be labour, low farmgate prices or adverse weather conditions, time to access resources and source solutions to problems can often be limited. That is where Scottish Dairy Hub looks to make a difference.

Launched in 2014 as one of the recommendations of the Scottish Dairy Review Ambition 2025 report, it has been in operation for over three years now. Stuart Martin, who is the project manager, says the service has a lot to offer farmers.

“What we are is a free-to-use, confidential and reliable service. We work to signpost farmers towards practical solution for problems they are having on their farm,” he explains.

The process is simple; a farmer will contact Stuart with any issues, concerns or problems that they have, and Stuart then sources a solution or answer to that problem. All the while, farmers can continue to invest their valuable time into their businesses.

Stuart says: “Farmers work extremely hard on a daily basis and that means finding time to research things like information on grants or where to source labour can be hard to come by. That is where the Dairy Hub comes in. We have a network of contacts throughout the industry that we can call on to help resolve those type of things.”

Stuart previously worked for 12 years with Scottish Organic Milk before heading up the Dairy Hub. Formally trained in project management, blending his knowledge of the dairy industry as well as the ability to co-ordinate a service like the Dairy Hub has been crucial to its success.

“Last year we received 50% more questions than we did in 2016 and a quarter of those enquiries have been repeat business. Queries come from farms of all sizes, from less than 100-cow herds to the more than 500-cow ones and they are countrywide.”

“I think it is very important that we have recognised farming is not a regular hour job and problems can arise at any time. That is why I am available to be contacted 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It is one of the weaknesses in the dairy industry that we take too long to respond to farmers concerns. At the Dairy Hub we strive to have an answer within 48 hours.”

The project is funded by the AHDB and Scottish Government, but Stuart believes the independence and confidentiality of the Hub are important.

“A farmer needs to know they can approach me with any issue big or small and that I am going to respond with an answer that has not been influenced by anyone else,” Stuart stresses.

One major benefit of the Dairy Hub is that it has its nose to the ground on many issues, according to Stuart. This year the hot topic for most farmers has been labour shortages, with one in 10 farmers enquiring about staffing issues.

“Having our finger on the pulse throughout the year allows us to rely that kind of information to others. The AHDB ran a leadership day last month in Lanarkshire because of what we were hearing from the farm level. It allowed farmers access to labour management training that they might not have had previously and that helps the industry as a whole.”

Having been involved in the industry for the last 15 years, Stuart has seen the evolution of dairy to where it is today.

“The industry is changing all the time, the number of herds is getting smaller, but the average herd size is increasing meaning the volume of milk being produced is still the same. I think that is a trend we are going to continue to see. One thing I would definitely say is, that farmers are incredible resilient, but I know most will be saying they wish they did not have to be.”

The dairy hub has dealt with a wide variety of farmer queries this year. The dairy hub has been able to provide farmers with advice on soil fertility and where there are sampling services available as well as heifer rearing and building design.

In addition to labour training, many farmers have also contacted Stuart that are considering diversification and developing an on-farm processing business.

“We’ll talk to anyone as long as we can help dairy farmers in Scotland,” Stuart summarises, “most of our queries come via phone but we also have a presence online through our website, Twitter or Facebook.”

Although only one part of a wider dairy industry in Scotland, Dairy Hub provides a pivotal link connecting many of the dots between producers and the wider support network that is available.