Three prominent Scottish estates, collectively spanning more than 120,000 acres, have been awarded prestigious international accreditation for their outstanding contributions to wildlife management and conservation. The recognition came today, Monday, 7 July 2025, at the GWCT Scottish Game Fair, with Scottish Government Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity, Jim Fairlie MSP, presenting the Wildlife Estates Scotland (WES) accreditations.

The newly accredited estates are Finzean Estate in Aberdeenshire, Glen Creran Estate in Argyll, and Reay Forest Estate in Sutherland. WES serves as the national arm of the broader European Wildlife Estates initiative, which is endorsed by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Environment.

Agriculture Minister Jim Fairlie commended the dedication shown by the estates. "This awards ceremony is one of my favourite events at the Game Fair and this year’s recipients are continuing to carry the baton for excellent land management practices. Reay Forest, Glen Creran and Finzean estates all show how incorporating nature into your land management and making an asset of the biodiversity on your doorstep can offer huge benefits to both the estates and to Scotland’s environment. I want to commend all three for their hard work and wish them all the best for the future,” he stated.

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Miles Montgomerie, chair of Wildlife Estates Scotland, also offered his congratulations, emphasising the rigorous process involved. "I congratulate these estates on their extraordinary achievement. It is fitting that they should be publicly recognised today, through Wildlife Estates Scotland," he said.

Mr. Montgomerie highlighted the commitment involved: "WES-accredited estates have made a commitment, often at significant cost, to protect and improve habitats, ecosystems and wildlife, for present and future generations to enjoy. Achieving WES accreditation is a rigorous process, requiring independent evaluation of conservation work undertaken for the benefit of the natural environment. These three estates are an inspiration to other rural businesses, and indeed to all of us."

The coveted Wildlife Estates accreditation is accessible to landholdings, farms, or estates of any size and type. Notably, Scotland currently ranks second in Europe for the amount of Wildlife Estates accredited land, with only Spain holding a greater acreage.