“Nobody here is an individual”: Developing a place-based understanding of biosecurity for managing sheep scab on the Western Isles of Scotland

Summary

This qualitative study examines sheep scab management in the marginalised crofting communities of Lewis and Harris, Scottish Western Isles, where traditional common grazing and communal sheep husbandry practices conflict with biosecurity imperatives to restrict animal mixing. The research identifies how marginalisation dynamics are disrupting established husbandry practices and proposes a three-phase framework for developing place-based biosecurity that integrates both community cultural priorities and disease control needs, whilst acknowledging that social capital alone may be insufficient without additional external resources.

Regional applicability

This study was conducted in the United Kingdom (Scotland) and is directly relevant to UK sheep farming policy and practice. The findings and framework are particularly applicable to marginalised pastoral communities in Scotland and potentially transferable to other UK regions with similar extensive grazing systems and disease management challenges, though the specific cultural and social dynamics of crofting are unique to Scotland.

Key measures

Thematic analysis of crofter perspectives on sheep scab management, biosecurity challenges, cultural and social factors in farming systems, and collective action options

Outcomes reported

The study identified tensions between traditional crofting practices of common grazing and biosecurity imperatives to reduce disease spread, and documented collective actions crofters could pursue to manage sheep scab. A three-phase framework for developing place-based biosecurity approaches is proposed.

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