The FoodScape – Détails, épisodes et analyse

An interview with David and Claire MacTaggart of Hallrule Farm, discussing their venture into venison farming and how this has also come to support their agritourism offering; Tiny Home Borders.

We delve into the the differences between farmed and wild, venison’s reputation as a tough meat to cook, the long shadow of ‘Bambi’, why - given that we are overrun by wild deer - we still eat venison imported from New Zealand, and deer cheese.

I also take my mic in amongst the stags and hinds in ‘rutting season’ and get up close and personal with ‘Number One’; the charismatic and fragrant darling of Hallrule farm.

If you’d like to know more about Hallrule Farm and Tiny Home Borders, you can visit them on Facebook, Instagram and at:

TinyHomeBorders.co.uk

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Thank you to David and Claire MacTaggart of Hallrule Farm.

Produced & Presented by Charlotte Maberly

Music by Iain Fraser from his album Koterana

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This podcast was founded with the help of the Borders Food Forum, and is grateful for the continued support of Abundant Borders.

An interview with Lucy Wilson at Wilson’s Farm and Kitchen, discussing their transition from running a traditional Borders beef farm, to also becoming a food-focussed agritourism destination.

We question why on-farm food experiences are so rare in the Scottish Borders, and whether the region could do more to celebrate its own produce.

We mentioned:

* GoRuralScotland.com

* ScottishAgritourism.co.uk

* SSDA - South of Scotland Destination Alliance

And if you’d like to know more about Wilson’t Farm and Kitchen, and the feasts and food events they offer, visit:

* Wilson's Farm and Kitchen Website

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Thank you to Lucy and Robert Wilson of Wilson’s Farm and Kitchen, Morebattle.

Produced & Presented by Charlotte Maberly

Music by Iain Fraser from his album Koterana

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This podcast was founded with the help of the Borders Food Forum, and is grateful for the continued support of Abundant Borders.

Sheep are one of the most common sights in the Scottish Borders farming landscape, but with the exception of Easter weekend, we hardly eat their meat at all.

This episode explores our relationship with sheep from field to plate, and includes conversations with farmers, a trader and a local butcher, discussing the joys, challenges, flavours and future of bringing lamb to the table. 

You’ll be hearing from Bairnkine organic farm and the lambing shed at Spital Tower Farm, gaining insight into how lambs get from farm to market with Farmstock, and learning how to prepare the juiciest roast from an enterprising butcher in Jedburgh. 

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Thank you to:

Lucy Tile, Bairnkine Farm

Watson Pringle, Spital Tower Farm

Vicky Warcup, Farmstock

Ryan Briggs, Briggsy's Butcher

Produced & Presented by Charlotte Maberly

Music by Iain Fraser from his album Koterana

Agricultural advisor, Laura Mitchell

This podcast was founded by the Borders Good Food Partnership with support from the Scottish Borders Council and the Scottish Borders Climate Action Network.

Surprising stories from a giant celebration of the humble tattie: the 2024 Borders Organic Gardeners' Potato Day.

Every year, a thousand or so potato-philes travel to the Kelso Showgrounds to source the varieties they love best. Forget your Maris Pipers, BOG Potato Day has almost 100 varieties - each one with a unique history, flavour and character. 

I learn why it's worth growing your own, tales of the breeders and gardeners who have saved the potato from being lost, and which is best: mash, roast, boiled or chips. 

I discover that there is far more to the potato than meets the eye....

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Find out more at BordersOrganicGardeners.org

Thank you to Keith Knight, John Marshall and Alan Romans, for sharing your passion for potatoes.

This podcast was founded by the Borders Good Food Partnership with support from the Scottish Borders Council and the Scottish Borders Climate Action Network.

An interview with Karen Birch, Chief Officer of Abundant Borders.

Abundant Borders believes that everyone, regardless of personal circumstances, should have access to healthy, nutritious food. They have set up seven community gardens across the Borders, and offer training in gardening and cooking.

We visit the Kelso Community Garden and discuss the history of the commons, the transformative nature of growing your own, and how gardening can be a form of revolution.

Find out more about Abundant Borders at: AbundantBorders.org.uk

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Special thanks to Jules Horne at Texthouse in Kelso, for helping to bring this podcast into being. 

www.texthouse.co.uk

And a huge thank you to Iain Fraser for the wonderful music. This episode features his track 'The Gazelle' from his recent album Koterana.

iainfraser.bandcamp.com

A short introduction to the FoodScape Podcast; exploring how food shapes our lives and our land here in the Scottish Borders. 

After four months of gathering food stories, sounds and flavours from across our region, it's time to step back and take a look out over our FoodScape.

This episode is a tasting menu celebrating the people and places encountered so far, and the ways in which they are shaping our land and our lives through food. 

And if it's your first time listening to the podcast, perhaps it will whet your appetite to listen back through the episodes so far... 

The podcast will return in September, after a short break to gather more ingredients for future audible feasts. 

In the meantime, stay in touch via social media @FoodScapePodcast or contact Charlotte Maberly directly at foodscapepodcast@gmail.com with any comments or suggestions for the future. 

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Produced & Presented by Charlotte Maberly

Music by Iain Fraser from his album Koterana

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Thank you to Abundant Borders for their continued support with this podcast.

Looking for some holiday reading? 

Seeing as it's the Borders Book Festival in the middle of this month, here are a handful of food-writing classics to whet your appetite. These are all fantastic reads into the politics, philosophy, science and culture of food. 

Buon apetito!

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The FoodScape Recommended Reads:

'How to Cook a Wolf' - MFK Fisher, 1942. North Point Press.

'Rooted: How Regenerative Farming can Change the World' - Sarah Langford, 2022. Penguin.

'The Virtues of the Table: How to Eat and Think' - Julian Baggini, 2014. Granta.

'First Bite: How We Learn to Eat' - Bee Wilson, 2015. Fourth Estate.

'Sitopia: How Food Can Save the World' - Carolyn Steel, 2020. Vintage.

'The Diet Myth: The Real Science Behind What We Eat' - Tim Spector, 2015. Orion.

'The Hidden Half of Nature' - Montgomery and Bikle, 2016. Norton.

'Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation' - Michael Pollan, 2013. Allen Lane.

'The Art of Fermentatoin' - Sandor Katz, 2012. Chelsea Green.

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Presented by Charlotte Maberly

How we produce food around the world in the 21st century, is widely accused of being one of the main causes of climate change. Agriculture and nature are now seen as being at odds, and in the UK our government is putting pressure on farmers to change the way they operate and be more nature friendly. In some cases, this means ceasing to produce all together, planting trees or re-wilding previously productive land.

Do we have to make a choice between nature or food production?

I visited Woodend farm in Berwickshire to speak with regenerative farmers John and Louise Seed who share the ups and downs of their journey into a different farming approach, and their thoughts on the future of farming in the Borders. 

Thank you to John and Louise Seed of Woodend Farm, Berwickshire. 

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Produced & Presented by Charlotte Maberly

Music by Iain Fraser from his album Koterana

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Thank you to Abundant Borders for their continued support with this podcast.

It's loud, it's fast, and when the auctioneer begins his call you've got to have your wits about you! 

I accompanied Mary Howlett of Going Native to the Newtown St Boswell's mart on one of her regular missions to buy native breed cattle. We experience the raw energy of the mart, discuss the importance of traditional breeds and animal welfare, and why these are vital in creating the tastiest steak. 

Thank you to:

• Mary Howlett of Going Native, Hawick


• The Newtown St Boswells Mart 

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Produced & Presented by Charlotte Maberly

Music by Iain Fraser from his album Koterana

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This podcast was founded by the Borders Good Food Partnership with support from Abundant Borders.