The cream of the crop! New competitions and awards added to the Royal Highland Show 2024.

At the 2024 Show, we introduced a number of new competitions to add to our Showcase of the highest quality produce and livestock.  From Milk and Cream classes in the Scottish Championships to a new class of Sheep, the Kerry Hills and an exciting new Trade Stand Award, this year was all about championing our industry. 

Find out more about them, the winners, and the judges too below…

"It was an honour to be asked to judge at the Royal Highland Show. An opportunity like this doesn’t happen very often…The show had to be the best show I have ever been to, and the standard of competition was extremely high with some outstanding cream and milk samples.”

Adam Brown, Judge from Bidlea Dairy.

“It was an honour to judge the new section for milk at this year's Royal Highland Show. Who knew there would be so much variety in milk taste and texture in one of our favourite farming staples? Certainly not me, so well done to RHASS for identifying the need for a milk 'champion'.

Ken Fletcher, Milk and Cream Judge

With over 30 entries, producers were eager to showcase the quality of their milk and cream, from small family farms to larger commercial dairies.

“As a family business we pride ourselves on quality and traceability and the dairy competition at this year’s Royal Highland Show seemed like a great opportunity to prove that and benchmark our product against some other fantastic businesses from around the country. It was great to see that as a new competition this category was well supported. It’s a fantastic platform to highlight the hard work and dedication from independent producers and as a showcase for the dairy industry as a whole.”

Cream Champion 2024, Ross Neilson from What’s Fresh

“We enjoy competing at the RHS as there is always such a high standard and classes are full of excellent produce. We are very proud to have won the first ever Scottish Milk Championship it was a great honour to be recognised for the work we do to ensure our Jolly Jerseys produce the best quality Milk.”

Milk Champion, Alex Fleming from Jolly Jersey Milk & Ice Cream.

The competition was incredibly successful for its first year, with competitors taking part in categories including: Whole milk, Semi-skimmed, Scottish Buffalo Milk, Whipping Cream, Cream, Double Cream and Thick Cream.

Full list of winners:

Class 45: Whole Milk

GOLD Mr Alex Fleming 8123 Whole Milk

SILVER Aalin Dairy 8242 Whole Milk

SILVER Miss KatherineJenkinson

8120 Whole Milk

BRONZE Arran Dairies LTD 8097 Whole Milk

BRONZE Mr Ross Pattinson 8076 Whole Milk

BRONZE Wee Isle Dairy 8005 Whole Milk

BRONZE Lochhill Dairy Co 8118 Whole Milk

BRONZE Law View Dairy 8119 Whole Milk

BRONZE Derby Hill Dairy 8203 Whole Milk

BRONZE Balnab Dairy 8224 Whole Milk

BRONZE The Coo Shed 8038 Whole Milk

BRONZE Humeston Byre 8129 Whole Milk

Class 46: Semi – Skimmed Milk

SILVER The Orkney Creamery

8028 Semi skimmed

BRONZE Park Farm Dairy 8086 Semi skimmed

BRONZE Lochhill Dairy Co 8117 Semi-skimmed

Class 47 : Alternative animal milk

BRONZE The Buffalo Farm 8043 Scottish Buffalo Milk

Class 48: One Bottle of Fresh Single Cream

BRONZE Derby Hill Dairy 8201 Whipping Cream

BRONZE The Orkney

Creamery

8027 Cream

BRONZE Lochhill Dairy Co 8116

Class 49: One Bottle of Fresh Double Cream

GOLD Park Farm Dairy 8085 Double cream

BRONZE Lochhill Dairy Co 8115 Double cream

BRONZE Derby Hill Dairy 8200 Double cream

BRONZE Aalin Dairy 8241 Thick Cream

The competition celebrated the breed's unique characteristics, with farmers from across Scotland and beyond bringing their best rams and ewes to the show in the ring, hoping to claim the top prize.

Winner of this year’s Kerryhill class, Chris Adamson, said competing this year was a dream come true!

“Participating in the Royal Highland Show has always been a dream of mine, but until this year, it wasn’t possible due to the lack of classes for my breed. With the introduction of the Kerry Hill classes this year, I knew I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

Winning a class was already more than I could have ever hoped for, but to then go on to take the championship and be shortlisted in the interbreed was beyond my wildest expectations. It was truly an unforgettable and magical experience. The atmosphere around the rings was electric, and I would highly recommend attending the show—even just as a spectator—you won’t be disappointed!” Chris Adamson, RHS Kerry Hill winner 2024

Judges followed a marking criteria taking into consideration public engagement, appearance, educational value, quality of products and services as well as innovation.

'Most of the stands have a full Summer of shows and festivals and they put a lot of work in to ensure customers see the highest quality products and are provided with the information and facts related to their area of knowledge.', Scott Taylor of Hoggs of Fife, Trade Award Judge.

Congratulations to the winners!

All areas followed the marking criteria below:

- Public Engagement

- Appearance (investment in Stand)

- Educational

- Quality of products and/or services

- Innovation

Scotland’s Larder and Home & Gift, 13^th Ave and Craft criteria included:

1-quality & provenance

2-customer engagement

3- stand dressing 

'Most of the stands have a full Summer of shows and festivals and they put a lot of work in to ensure customers see the highest quality products, and are provided with the information and facts related to their area of knowledge.', Scott Taylor of Hoggs of Fife stated as he took part in the judging.

Speaking about what she was looking for when judging, Leslie Davidson said 'I was looking for well laid out stands...little things like features and flowers to balance the stand.'

The following traders won awards and commendations - congratulations to all! 

Auldton Stoves supply a large range of market leading Live Fire BBQ’s, Pizza Ovens, Wood fired Hot Tubs, Wood Fired Saunas as well as Wood Burning Stoves and Chimney Systems throughout the UK.

‘We only choose the Royal Highland Show to exhibit our Outdoor Range of products because of the professional manor the show is operated and the brand awareness it creates due to large numbers the RHS attract. It was a great privilege to be recognised by the RHS for all the hard work our small family team puts towards the week. We are very proud to display and cook the finest of Scottish Produce on our range of live fire BBQ’s and Ovens.’ Mark, Auldton Stoves

Winners, Pentland Jaguar Land Rover offers a premium selection of luxury vehicles, combining cutting-edge technology with exceptional off-road capabilities, all backed by a commitment to outstanding customer service and support.

‘Receiving the RHS 2024 Tradestand Award is an incredible honour for us at Pentland Jaguar Land Rover. It recognises our commitment to excellence and innovation, not only in our vehicles but also in the way we engage with our customers and the broader community. This award validates our efforts to create an impactful presence at the Royal Highland Show, reflecting our dedication to embodying the Land Rover and John Clark Motor group values of adventure, resilience, and quality.

We trade at the Royal Highland Show because it aligns perfectly with our Pentland Land Rover & John Clark Motor Group values of exploration, durability, and connection with the outdoors. The show provides a unique opportunity for us to engage with our existing clients and forge new relationships in a setting that celebrates the same passions that our brand represents. It's a chance to showcase our vehicles in an environment that resonates with our customers’ love for the rugged, versatile lifestyle that Land Rover embodies.’ Sara Lagerman, Pentland Jaguar Land Rover

The stands in the Craft Area were of a very high standard with Cabinet of Curiosity showing originality of the skilfully designed animal mannequins and meticulously stitched making put this cleverly dressed trade stand in a league of its own!  Hilary Cochran, Trade Judge

Morrison Sporans was highly commended in the Home & Gift Hall, a small yet highly creative team of seven artisans who between them have almost 100 years’ experience in their sporran-making craft.

‘We were thrilled to receive an award for our stand at the Royal Highland Show. Initially, we were quite apprehensive about attending, unsure of how Highlandwear would be received. However, the warm welcome we experienced surpassed all our expectations. This year, we chose to attend the Royal Highland Show to broaden our brand awareness among the public, as we have primarily focused on trade customers until now. The Royal Highland Show offers significantly higher foot traffic compared to the smaller events we've previously attended, and its visitors' spending aligns perfectly with our product pricing. We are a small, family-owned business based in Perth, Scotland, specializing in handmade, bespoke sporrans and accessories for both traditional and fashion-forward kilt wearers.’ Kimberley Neil, Morrison Sporans

‘We were so thrilled to win 'Best Trade stand Award in Scotlands Larder', It was so unexpected and put us in the limelight and created a stir on Social media channels. It was fantastic! all our customers new and old got in touch with us following the award and it definitely brought our products into the limelight.

Trading at the Royal Highland Show is such an honour. We have all been attending the Show since we were little children and to bring a product to the forefront of the Scottish Produce and exhibit at the show was a dream come true.’ Catherine Sim, Scottish Honeyberry Growers

Scottish Honeyberry Growers was authentically exhibited on this small but neatly informative stand, promoting in the context of provenance, sustainability, and viability. Hilary Cochran, Trade Award Judge

We are regular exhibitors at the show and indeed our stand space has increased significantly in recent years.  We find the RHS is an excellent place to interact with our consumers and also to showcase any new products we have.  We also see a lot of customers throughout the show as well – so all in all, it is an important few days on our annual calendar. Ronnie Wilson, Mrs Tilly’s

Don't miss out on these competitions next year in the 2025 Royal Highland Show!