SAOS

23/06/2026

Our latest SAOS Snippet is on the important work we're doing as part of the AMU project, supporting vets and increasing awareness and sharing knowledge around antibiotic usage and proactive alternatives.

The Pilot is currently recruiting more veterinary practices, with 5 more spaces to be filled! If you'd like to have your practice involved, get in touch with [email protected]

18/06/2026

Great news for low ground deer stalkers and managers!

A third round of the Low Ground Venison Supply Chain Project has been launched to enable upgrades to chiller facilities and infrastructure, and an increase in throughput, bringing more locally-harvested venison to market.

The project is a collaborative partnership between SAOS, , Venison and the Deer Network Scotland.

Find out how to apply at

Scotland’s experts on farmer co-ops and food industry collaboration, we work with food and farming businesses to make them more profitable, competitive, and sustainable - to shape the future, today.

17/06/2026

Check out this video from SAOS subsidiary Food Integrity Assurance

It gives a great insight into what they do and their broad width across Scottish food supply chains.

Since its establishment in 2022, FIA’s list of clients has grown steadily, with their work supporting, developing and building on the key credentials of truly sustainable food production, that is climate-friendly and supportive of our unique environment.

Find out more: https://youtu.be/6HFekmkVCmU?si=LdzA9tisKI0gO5av

Food Integrity Assurance was established by SAOS to work more close...

16/06/2026

Our SAOS Summer Update cover story is from our CEO Tim Bailey - how is it that everyone seems to agree that co-operation and working together is vital for future, sustainable success, but that's coupled not only with a lack of conviction in policy to enable it, but also a number of barriers actually stifling it! It's a good, if slightly frustrating, read!

You can flip read/download the newsletter at https://saos.coop/whats-new/quarterly-newsletters/

15/06/2026

Congratulations to our Emma Patterson Taylor who recently had herNuffield Farming Scholarships Trust report published.

Emma's topic is "The Position of Farming in the Public Consciousness" and it's a great bit of work emphasising the complications and contradictions of the UK's relationship with food and farming.

It's fair to say that this extract sums up one of the key problems.

You can read the full report at: https://www.nuffieldscholar.org/reports/gb/2025/position-farming-public-consciousness

11/06/2026

We've just posted our latest video on how the MyHerdStats platform is helping to improve performance, profitability and sustainability in Scottish Herds.

For nearly two decades, SAOS has led the way on delivering
co-operative approaches to hashtag management that protect the rights of farmers, and will help unlock the value of precision farming for Scotland.

In 2008, in partnership with industry and The Scottish Government, we set up the initial ScotEID research pilot for sheep. Over the years since,
has grown and developed to become a multi-species database, providing real-time tracing data of farm livestock through their supply chains, until the point when they enter the food chain.

One of the more recent developments has been the creation of MyHerdStats, which gives farmers access to information on their herd performance, in easily accessed tables and charts, allowing for informed decision making. The platform is available to all herd keepers through their existing ScotEID log in.

It's a simple and straightforward system and a really useful tool for farmers using their own existing data.

Find out more at:

Developed and operated by ScotEID, MyHerdStats provides cattle keep...

10/06/2026

Applications are currently open for the Autumn 2026 intake of Growing Tomorrow's Leaders, the leadership development programme for Scotland's agriculture, food and drink, and wider land-based sectors.

It's a great opportunity to develop your leadership skills, your networks and a wider knowledge of our industry and its challenges.

If you're keen to find out more, go to https://saos.coop/events-and-training/growing-tomorrows-leaders/gtl-brochure-for-2026

https://www.thescottishfarmer.co.uk/news/26001094.rural-leaders-graduate-scotland-training-programme/

Scotland’s experts on farmer co-ops and food industry collaboration, we work with food and farming businesses to make them more profitable, competitive, and sustainable - to shape the future, today.

10/06/2026

Another 'hot off the press' announcement - our SAOS Annual Report for 2026 is now available, reporting on what we've been up to over the last year.

We promise it's well worth a read (and we keep it deliberately concise).

Find out what we've been up to as a group, to shape the future of farming and food at: https://saos.coop/about-us/latest-annual-reports

09/06/2026

We're excited to announce the launch of the Scottish Agriculture Data Partnership

Key organisations across Scotland’s agricultural sector have come together to progress plans for farmer-governed, industry-owned data solutions, marking a major step towards giving Scottish farmers and crofters greater control and value from their data.

The proposed initiative aims to tackle growing concerns around how farm data is collected, used, and shared, while addressing widespread inefficiencies caused by repeated data entry across multiple systems.

The partnership will benefit from SAOS’s trusted agri data track record with development and operation of ScotEID, MyHerdStats and pioneering data innovation initiatives being undertaken by its SmartRural subsidiary.

The Partnership will explore the development of a centralised data co-operative model, governed by farmers and built on a permissions-based system. This would allow individual producers to control what data is shared, with whom, and for what purpose, ensuring data ownership remains firmly with those who generate it. This development builds on a pilot project exploring foundational infrastructure successfully completed in 2025 with funding support from SAOS, QMS and Scottish Pig Producers.

Tim Bailey, SAOS Chief Executive, said: “Farmers and crofters are increasingly being asked for data, but often they see no benefit from providing it. This initiative is about ensuring they retain ownership and receive value from that data, while reducing duplication and administrative burden.”

George Noble of SmartRural added: “The technology to deliver this already exists and we’ve seen similar partnerships working elsewhere in the world. The real challenge - and opportunity - is building trust, governance and collaboration across the sector.”

Plans are already in place to launch pilot projects and demonstration initiatives, working with early adopters to showcase real-world benefits and encourage wider participation.

Drawing on international best practice, draft terms of reference and a data charter have been prepared to be agreed by participating organisations.
The aim is to seek comprehensive sector-wide support, including from The Scottish Government and other interested stakeholders, to build momentum and pace behind this initiative.

Participating organisations so far include:

SAOS
NFU Scotland
Quality Crops
Crofting Federation
Land & Estates
PIGS
Sheep Association (Scotland)
BEEF ASSOCIATION (NBA)
Quality Meat Scotland (QMS)
Dairy

Read the full story at: https://saos.coop/whats-new/news/scottish-agriculture-bodies-unite-to-launch-farmer-led-data-partnership

08/06/2026

Our Summer '26 SAOS Update is hot off the press and jam-packed with news on what the SAOS Group team and our co-op members have been up to over the last quarter.







Read all about it at: https://saos.coop/whats-new/quarterly-newsletters/