Wild greylag goose on commercial sale 16/2/14
Wild goose meat will go on sale at licensed outlets in the Uists in a pilot project, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) has confirmed.
It is hoped the legal sale will encourage people to shoot more geese and avoid the meat going to waste.
The estimated 10,000 resident geese in the Uists are a huge pest with large flocks trampling, soiling and devouring crops and grassland.
Geese numbers have been a long-
People were employed to scare geese from August through to October.
Licences will now initially be provided to enable the sale for a trial period until March 2015.
Paul Wheelhouse, Minister for Environment and Climate Change said: “I welcome the progress made by crofters and farmers who have been working with SNH to manage populations of resident greylag geese to prevent serious agricultural damage. These carefully controlled licences will allow the local sale of fresh wild goose meat and so prevent the waste of a resource and provide an economic opportunity for the local community."
Johanne Ferguson, SNH’s operations manager for the Outer Hebrides and secretary to
the local goose group confirmed: “This is an exciting development. It is something
the local goose group and wider community have been working towards for a very long
time. Sales of geese shot under the pilot should provide the means to make goose
management self-
“But now several local businesses are interested in developing goose products while others are looking forward to using and promoting delicious local wild goose on their menus.
“As you would expect we must demonstrate that adequate controls are in place –both for food safety and species’ protection.
The local group organised a special course on meat hygiene for marksmen this month to enable them to receive a licence. Although the goose population is still very high, bag limits are reviewed annually through the local group and agreed with national advisors to ensure geese are managed sustainably.”