Ayrshire tattie under threat

Dec 11 2009 by Edwin Lawrence, Ayrshire Post (main ed)

THE FAMED Ayrshire tattie could be under threat by climate change, farmers report.

And dairy cattle are having to kept inside for much of the year, due to sodden fields.

Ayrshire farmer Jane Lamont says tractors now need oversized tyres to get across increasingly wet fields.

And dairy farmer Alan Hogarth says he’s been forced to keep his cows indoors for the majority of the year.

Heavier rainfall is leaving the grass so drenched that cows can no longer graze upon it.

The farmers’ comments come in the same week as a climate change rally in Glasgow and just days before world leaders meet to discuss the issue in Copenhagen.