Heaven scent... the fresh opportunity to smell country air
LEEDS-BASED DAIRY cooperative Arla is releasing its own room fragrance based on the scent of the countryside.
The perfumed product has been designed to raise awareness of the increasing numbers of farmers who are using environmentally-friendly muck spreading techniques to reduce the pungent aroma associated with slurry fertiliser.
Arla has now ‘‘bottled’’ the smell of fresh country air to celebrate its return to the countryside.
Created in partnership with fragrance experts CPL Aromas, the limited edition scent is a delicate blend of grasses, nettles, tree sap and straw and is available as a reed diffuser.
The broadcaster and adventurer Ben Fogle visited Arla member Jason Bayley’s farm to find out more about alternative slurry spreading methods which can reduce airborne emissions by between 30 and 90 per cent.
Mr Fogle said: “While that whiff of cow poo in the air after muck spreading takes me back to day trips out with my family as a kid, I must admit the benefits of these more environmentallyfriendly methods do more than make up for the loss in nostalgia. It’s great to know that the agricultural community is always looking at ways to become more sustainable.”
Arla runs climate checks on its member farms so that their impact on the environment can be monitored, and suggests improvements in agricultural practises. Around 2,400 farmers are now part of the self-owned co-operative milk supplier, which has a large plant in Leeds.