This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Funding awards for farming businesses
23/06/2004
The Executive is to provide more than £255,000 to 26 farm diversification projects.
Awards totalling £255,442 have been made to farming families under the Farm Business Development Scheme (FBDS). This will help the successful applicants to start new diversification businesses, or to expand existing diversified businesses. A variety of projects have so far been approved for funding, including tourist accommodation, outdoor activity centres, rural services such as florists and IT services, and a children's nursery.
In announcing the funding, Rural Development Minister Ross Finnie said:
"The Scottish Executive is committed to supporting a sustainable rural economy: diversification is a key factor in meeting this goal as it allows members of farming families to secure employment and generate an income from outwith the traditional agricultural sector.
"Since August 2001 the FBDS has funded 574 diversification projects. I would encourage all farmers within the Scheme area to consider whether FBDS could help them establish diversified businesses, or support the growth of their existing diversified businesses."
Individual case studies detailed completed projects which have been completed under this Scheme for each of the 5 PAC areas are available from the Executive's press office.
FBDS is an innovative business development scheme for farmers and their immediate families operating across Lowland Scotland, covering the area from East Moray in the north to Dumfries and Galloway in the south. Farmers in the Highlands and Islands Special Transitional Programme (H&ISTP) area who have been actively engaged in agriculture for a two year period may be eligible to apply for grant assistance under the Agricultural Business Development Scheme (ABDS).
FBDS was launched in July 2001. It is a discretionary and competitive scheme which provides variable grant assistance of up to 50% of eligible costs for farming families wishing to diversify either within or outwith agriculture.
Five locally based Project Assessment Committees (PACs) assess applications. The PACs are chaired by the Scottish Executive and consist of representatives from partner organisations including local authorities, local enterprise companies, Scottish Natural Heritage and local tourist board representatives. This ensures that projects are in line with local strategies and can meet local priorities. Industry interests are represented by the National Farmers' Union of Scotland (NFUS) and the Scottish Rural Property and Business Association (SRPBA), who send representatives to observe PAC meetings.
There are a wide variety of measures eligible for FBDS grant. These range from projects in alternative agriculture, such as the growing of non-traditional crops, to providing rural services such as agricultural contracting, construction services, forestry services and boarding kennels, through to improving facilities for tourists and bringing redundant farm buildings into use for purposes such as quality tourist accommodation.
There are five local PACs covering Dumfries and Galloway, Scottish Borders, East South (Forth Valley, Angus, Perth and Kinross, Fife, Lothians), East North (the areas around Aberdeen), and West (Clyde Valley and Ayrshire). The Scheme is delivered locally by six Area Project Officers - one for each of the PACs, except East South where there are two because of the size of the area.