North Ronaldsay aims for protected status for wool and mutton

Applications to grant European Protected Geographical Indicator (PGI) status to North Ronaldsay wool and mutton were launched yesterday in Kirkwall.

If successful, the wool and mutton, which come from the island’s seaweed-eating native sheep, will join a growing list of popular iconic Scottish products with European protected status, including Orkney Island Cheddar, Scotch Beef, Arbroath Smokies, and Traditional Ayrshire Dunlop Cheddar.

Scotland’s cabinet secretary for rural affairs, food and the environment, Richard Lochhead, welcomed the applications from A Yarn From North Ronaldsay and the North Ronaldsay Sheep Court, commenting: “Scotland is world-famous for our wonderful produce, and people want to know they are buying the real deal.

“Achieving PGI status for both North Ronaldsay wool and mutton will ensure that consumers at home and abroad have a one hundred per cent guarantee of the product’s authenticity.”