Workshop Timetable
The NSA Scotsheep 2026 organising committee is delighted to offer workshop areas at the event with a range of topics and speakers providing an even better opportunity to gain practical, hands-on advice and tips.
Workshops are slightly smaller and more informal than the seminars, with the intention of people getting involved, asking questions and making the most of the experts on hand.
Event Workshop Timetable
9.30am – 9.55am “Native British Lamb 365 - A proven system, for a sustainable future!”
Derek Hall, Chair of the Native British Lamb 365 Group will explain how Hybrid Vigour in sheep production the most forgotten about natural growth and production efficiency enhancer. The more diverse the breeds that you cross the higher the benefits are to the subsequent generation. The stratified sheep system exploits this phenomenon to its maximum. This goes beyond “emissions” it looks at sequestration, biodiversity and the circular economy in well managed hill, upland and lowland sheep production. The principle is simple native breeds in their natural surroundings, the right sheep the right place, maximising carbon capture, making the most of grass, our most abundant and low-cost feed source. Supporting remote rural communities to survive and thrive. Offering a sustainably produced lamb that gives the consumer the peace of mind that the lamb they are buying is good for the planet, naturally produced healthy and is consistent in taste texture and eating quality.
10.00am – 10.25am “SAC”
We have a number of topics we could cover predominantly around nutrition / flock management on the consultancy side (would be looking to focus this on a particular area for development) but also have colleagues from veterinary or research that could also get involved for another seminar to cover either health-related topics such as control of parasite burdens or other flock health challenges/ or flock health planning etc. Or our research team at Kirkton are also doing a lot of work with tech for sheep such as GPS tracking, Collars or some of the work done around methane measurements etc in the Breed4Change Project.
10.30am – 10.55am “Zoetis”
11.00am - 11.45am “Tellus Mater”
Tellus Mater will give us a talk through their work on creating a Scottish led initiative set up to provide a global platform, where farmers are given recognition for the environmental goods they provide on a daily basis. They will explain how their aim is to open up new, complimentary income streams. This is their debut event and something I certainly wouldn’t want to miss!
11.50am – 12.15pm “Innovis - Small Changes, Big Gains: Smarter Decisions for Profitable Flocks”
Colin Forsyth has been making small, smart changes to drive more kilos of lamb per acre from his low-input system in Thornhill, Dumfriesshire. Join Colin and Dewi Jones as they share the key decisions behind his system, and how Innovis genetics have helped turn incremental improvements into real gains in flock performance and profitability.
12.20pm – 12.45pm “Technologies for sheep farming”
Claire Morgan-Davies (SRUC) will showcase tools such as sheep tracking (GPS), virtual fence, and other sensors/tools potentially useful for sheep farming, especially in upland areas. This session will use interactive methods to encourage discussions with the audience regarding benefits and barriers to using technologies in sheep farming.
12:50pm – 1.15pm “Numnuts live demonstration”
1.20pm – 1.55pm “Beth Wells from Moredun, Ann Van-Eestsvelt workshop”
A panel will discuss Louping ill a virus and transmitted by ticks and the development of a new vaccine. Ann will give the message that it is not just dying from louping ill but also things like poor fertility, lower immunity, secondary bacterial infections etc. not the things one would think off to be caused by ticks.
2.00pm – 2.45pm “QMS Butchery Demonstration with Gordon Newlands”
Gordon Newlands from Quality Meat Scotland will present a butchery demonstration.
3.00pm – 3.25pm “Managing the Mental Load”
Join the Farmstrong team to hear some practical tips on how to manage the mental load in farming, based on Farmstrong's recently launched Foundations of Mental Strength resources. This workshop will be a taster session with information taken from the six standalone workshops which explore values, emotions, mindset, personal experience and finding meaning beyond financial pressures. Farmstrong shares practical information and tools based on the latest wellbeing science to help farmers and crofters to feel good and function well.
3.30pm – 3.55pm “Fevara”
4.00pm- 4.25pm “Zoetis”
