Rachel Hammond crafts artisan speciality meats from the lush banks of the River Tweed and the green hills and wooded valleys of Berwickshire in Scotland.

No doubt most of you will be thinking of holidays just now. The weather at the moment is being extremely kind, encouraging our brains to think about beaches, walks, family, and food and drink.

“It’s interesting to see when I was a student living in France as a teaching assistant in a provincial lycée, one of the fundamental lessons I learned when it came to home cooking was that it could not be hurried.” Writer and Journalist Cate Devine.

On our way to the garden on Sunday morning, we received a phone call from the BBC asking if one of us would comment the on-going concern of serious staff shortages in the hospitality industry.

In my short life of 35 years as a chef, I have come across many people in the trade who have really moved me with their sensitivity to the job they are doing; not just with their skills at butchering, filleting or cooking, but with their philosophy of showing an extremely attentive and caring approach, respecting the whole life of the animal with a soft and gentle touch.

“During a recent chat with Fred he asked if I could write him something for the newsletter…well, what could I write? He said something about food or farming. I’ve been out of the food game for a while and we try not to farm too much these days. So what could I write about? Lambing? The thing I think more than anything defines a livestock farmer. If you have sheep you need lambs to sell. I do miss that, the challenge, the buzz, the constant work. We only had 180 at most, not big in this day and age. These days you need 1 or 2 or 3 thousand. But I seriously do miss the lambing time.“ Dominic Smith of Sunnyside Lodges

Last weekend was full of emotions at l’escargot. It is pretty normal in a restaurant to make people happy, and whilst we could see lots of happiness, we could also feel the weight that people had to carry. We got a good sense of how much people have suffered for many months.

Our long-time friend and customer Dorothy writes to us from France.

This week marks week 54 of l’escargot bleu at home. I cannot believe it. What began as a trial (as a means of survival) has turned into a full-time business. I would like to thank you all for helping us to keep our heads above water. This difficult time has made us a lot more conscious to take nothing for granted in life. We should all think about what is happening around us, and do our little daily things to make our lives, and the lives of others, a wee bit better.

“It’s now been 5 years since we set up Strathearn Cheese Co. Having worked for a supplier to the restaurant trade for a number of years, I wanted to set up my own business and be my own boss. I asked my wife for a home cheese making kit one Christmas and so it began. I was so surprised and pleased by the results that I was getting, that the business idea was born. I enrolled Drew, a friend from our Rugby club to join me as a partner. Legend has it that I got him drunk after a game and made him sign the paperwork.” Pierre Leger of Strathearn Cheese