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Cairngorms

Cairngorms National Park Authority helps gamekeepers meet new Meet Handling Regulations

10th January 2006

The Cairngorms National Park Authority (CNPA) is meeting local demand for training in the new meat hygiene regulations, having run six courses over the last ten weeks with another three taking place early this year.

The CNPA’s Land Based Business Training project has been inundated with requests from gamekeepers and stalkers based within or close to the Park boundary for help in identifying and funding training in Wild Game Meat Hygiene (Large and Small Game).

Sam Masson of the Land Based Business Training project explained: “The new hygiene regulations came into effect on the 1st of January so there has been a rush of interest in this particular course.  Anyone handling game from now on should be able to satisfy the Food Standards Agency that they are competent in this field, and having a LANTRA certificate in Level 2 Wild Game Meat Hygiene will certainly show this. Participants pay up to half the price of the course and the cost of their exam, with the Land Based Business Training project meeting the rest of the costs.  Once the next few courses have been completed, we will have helped over 120 gamekeepers and stalkers gain this important qualification.”

Two courses on Wild Game Meat Hygiene are being delivered this week in Grantown-on-Spey (Wednesday 11 January) and Blair Atholl (Thursday 12 January).

The Land Based Business Training project – which is funded by the CNPA and the European Social Fund – is all about helping those working in the land based sector to identify training needs, find trainers and influence course dates to suit the time commitments unique to this sector.  The project has helped well over 400 individuals since it began.

Project manager Kate Christie added: “We organise lots of different courses for land based businesses in the Park, or very close to the Park boundary.  These courses are meeting a variety of training needs including the use and maintenance of machinery, equipment and vehicles; environmental courses; IT and business skills and health and safety courses.  This type of training is all part-funded, with the individual or business expected to pay towards the course.  However, the project also offers free courses where the training need is seen to deliver a public benefit. We have fully funded courses covering a range of topics including wildfire fighting, the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, all abilities access and wildlife crime.”

For more information on the Land Based Business Training project, please contact Kate Christie [email protected] or Sam Masson [email protected] on tel: 01479 870535/537.