This.

Sep 16, 2020

Menu A busy Open Farm Sunday event at Hilton of Aldie, Kinross, in June 2019 THIS IS the last call to farmers to open their virtual doors this weekend in support of Open Farm Sunday. Britain's annual farming showcase goes online for the second time this year – after a successful event held in June as a result of Coronavirus – and once more farmers have the chance to engage with the public and promote the devoted work that goes on behind the scenes to produce fantastic local produce. The two-day event – run by Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF) – will focus on food and biodiversity, with nutritious food, seasonal recipes and live cooking sessions with farmers and chefs promoting home-grown and local produce taking place throughout Saturday 19. On Sunday 20, there will be interactive tours from farmers giving an insight in to how food is produced and what they are doing to protect and enhance wildlife on their farms. Hosting the event for the first time in September, provides an opportunity to showcase the tail end of harvest, drilling and autumn calving alongside many other aspects of farm life which the public may never get the chance to see. Farmers will be encouraged to go live on Facebook, send in videos and share photographs about their wildlife and biodiversity highlights. Whether it is bee friendly crops, habitat banks or wildflower meadows to boost biodiversity, the day will be a virtual celebration of all that farmers do to protect and enhance the environment and the value of nature to people’s health and wellbeing. With the recent pandemic confining many individuals to their homes for months on end, the opportunity to experience food and farming from their sitting room may be the only chance they have to see beyond the farm gate. For farmers considering getting involved, here are some top tips on filming a piece for the event: • Go live if you are confident! 82% of viewers would rather watch a live video. OR take a photo or video that morning and post it the same day; • When filming, keep things fun and light-hearted where you can; • Make sure you have a good backdrop – cow? combine? woods? ; • If you have a particular message you want to get across – say things three times in three different ways to help the audience absorb it. • Authenticity is key – do not edit videos too much – the public like the raw material; • Use visual content – be prepared with props; • Always film with your phone in landscape (not portrait); • Use #LOFS20, tag @OpenFarmSunday and have fun!