The First Minister, Alex Salmond, has announced a grant of £50,000 to be given to The Royal Scottish Agricultural Benevolent Institution (RSABI) to assist farmers and farm workers who have suffered hardship as a result of terrible weather that affected crops last year. The grant was announced whilst speaking at a National Farmers Union Scotland event, which celebrates its centenary this year.
The grant funding will be administered through the RSABI, a registered Scottish charity which helps to relieve hardship and poverty amongst people who have depended on the land for their livelihoods.
This grant follows a payment to RSABI of £200K from the Scottish Government, after the outbreak of Foot and Mouth in 2007; and was made to help individuals in need of support.
It is expected the funding will help farmers and those working on the land by providing assistance to those individuals who find they are facing personal difficulties.
The First Minister recognised that the most important element in this is the quality of the product Scotland is able to market, stating, “Recent figures show that Scottish food and drink exports have increased by more that 50 per cent since 2007, to more that £5 billion.”
Dr Maurice Hankey, Chief Executive of the RSABI, said, “This funding will enable RSABI to put more financial support into homes of these farmers to help themselves and their families keep going until better conditions prevail.”
Hankey also says, “I would encourage any farmers who feel they are in crisis to get in touch with the charity to find out how we can help.”
Published on aliveradio.net
Kemii 