Following on from NFU Scotland’s (NFUS) AGM and conference, the union has welcomed a number of new appointments from Highland and Aberdeenshire to its team of board of directors.
Mark McCallum, who farms at St Martins, Culbokie, will take on the role as Highland chairman from Cameron MacIver, while Colin Flett, becomes the Orkney chairman, replacing Steven Sandison.
The new Ayrshire regional chairman is John Kerr, from Newmilns.
Aberdeenshire dairy farmer Bruce Mackie, from Middleton of Rora, Peterhead, replaces Gary Mitchell, as chair of the union’s milk committee, and Peter Kennedy, takes on the chair of the Less Favoured Areas (LFA) committee from Robert Macdonald.
Alasdair Macnab’s previous role as chair of the legal and technical committee will now be filled by Gordon McKilligan from Headtown of Ord, Cornhill.
The north-east region is chaired by Alan Simpson from Mains of Leslie, Insch, while Cecil Eunson, from Griesta Farm, Tingwall, Shetland, heads up the Shetland region.
Highland Perthshire farmer Martin Kennedy, was re-elected unchallenged as the NFUS president and will be supported by his two vice-presidents Andrew Connon from Aberdeenshire, and Alasdair Macnab, from Ross-shire.
The presidential position is held for two years, and a president can serve a maximum of two consecutive two-year terms.
This means that Mr Kennedy, the 63rd president of NFUS, will remain in office until the union’s council meeting in February 2025.
As Andrew Connon was re-elected to the position of vice-president, he will be required to stand again in 2024 to continue in that post.
Under the constitution, Alasdair Macnab, will not have to stand for re-election until February 2025.
Other committee chairs unmentioned include:
Combinable crops – Willie Thomson, East Lothian
Environment & land use – Peter Douglas, Hawick
Livestock – Hugh Fraser, Inverness
Poultry – Robert Thompson, Forfar
Pigs – Jamie Wyllie, Dunbar
Specialist crops – Iain Brown, Fife
Next Generation – Matthew Steel, Forfar