Orkney Needs An Abattoir

UPDATE - There is now an on line petition for Orkney abattoir that you can sign if you wish. 

On Wednesday 8 August I learnt for the first time that plans to build a new small abattoir in Orkney, adjacent to the existing Mart, hadn't been able to progress as everyone had hoped, and it seems may have stalled completely.

Over the past 8 months I'd got the strong impression from talking to people around Orkney that there was an overwhelming feeling that Orkney MUST have an abattoir.  That personal feeling is one thing, but I felt it was time to find out if that really was the case and, if so, to produce tangible evidence of it.

So the rest of the day was spent trying to contact various people to find out more about the current situation and I put together a petition to take to Dounby Show, to see if anyone wanted to sign it, listen to anything they had to say and to get written comments about the situation.

The weather for the show was kind this year and the ground was good for walking on.  I very much enjoy going to Dounby Show every year, and this year didn't disappoint.  Some wonderful livestock, great displays and crowds of people having a grand day out.  Lovely to see the shearing competition back again.

A rather different show experience this year for me and my husband, who helped with chatting to people and taking round the petition.  We were both totally overwhelmed at the response.  I felt, as I wrote above, that there was a strong desire for Orkney to have an abattoir service, but I had no idea how universal that feeling was and how strong it was.

A small selection of the comments people wrote down:
"Absolutely essential for island community"
"We need an abattoir"
"Obviously there has to be an abattoir"
"Essential service"
"Utterly necessary"
"Need to get a meeting organises ASAP"
"Orkney needs this"
"We are going backwards not forwards"
"Disgraceful not having one"
"Desperately needed"
"Very much needed"
"We really need this"
"Orkney meat brand was hard won - no abattoir means loss of brand"
"We need a facility to be self-sufficient post Brexit"
"It's a disgrace this facility doesn't exist in Orkney"
"Obviously very necessary"
"A real necessity for Orkney and welfare of the beasts"
"What happened to common sense? Just do it!"
"The council should support the Orkney farm animals and jobs"
"Save Orkney Beef"
"Of course Orkney needs an abattoir for welfare & jobs"
"We know what it's like without one" (visitor from Caithness)
"Crazy not to"
"Essential to get one again!!"
"A necessity no matter where one lives! An essential need!" (farming visitor from Australia)
"As a goatkeeper much needed by us"
"Goatmeat production can only expand with an abattoir locally"
"Must happen"
"No use without it"
"Of course we need a bloody abattoir"

Nearly 500 people signed the petition - we were staggered at how keen so many people were to show their support for Orkney having an abattoir.



Many people took time to talk to us, and we learnt a great deal about the history of the abattoir service in Orkney, more about the current situation, offers of help and advice.  We thank everyone who gave up their time at the show to share their knowledge, experience and views.

For those who may have missed all the news on radio, newspapers and television over the last 8 months, my understanding of the current situation, to the best of my knowledge, is this:

• There is now no pork or goat meat able to be produced for commercial sale in Orkney.

• The butchers in Orkney have been able to make arrangements for cattle & lambs to travel to Dingwall for slaughter so that Orkney reared meat can be sold in Orkney.

• North Ronaldsay farmers, with the help of Shetland abattoir, and some luck with weather and ferries, were able to get sheep off for slaughter in March so that tourists and residents have been able to enjoy North Ronaldsay mutton this season.

• I've not been able to find a way to get my primitive rare breed sheep slaughtered in the stress-free conditions that Orkney abattoir staff provided so ably, so no Boreray mutton has been produced this year for sale locally and in Scotland.  There may be other farmers of rare breed livestock in Orkney similarly affected.

I have a personal interest in getting an abattoir service back in Orkney, as a farmer  (see above), as a resident of Orkney wanting the best for our islands, and as a shopper.  For over 3 decades now, in common with an increasing number of people, I've been choosing to buy meat from good local butchers, farm shops or on line directly from farms  so that I could enjoy the finest quality of meat from different breeds, supporting rare breeds, and focusing on the welfare of the animals from farm to slaughter.

You can read more about Boreray sheep in Orkney and what they can offer interested farmers in the current issue of Orkney Farmer.

Tomorrow I'll be at County Show with the petition and hoping to talk to even more people to find out more information about the current situation and to get more advice about possible ways people could work towards getting a suitably sized, modern & sustainable local abattoir service in Orkney.

The really positive thing for everyone involved in future planning for an Orkney abattoir to take from yesterday is that there is overwhelming support for an abattoir here and strong feeling that it should be regarded as an essential service for our community.


 Jane Cooper
Abattoir@runbox.com