Meet the consultant - Ewan Johnston
I'm Ewan Johston, a Principal Consultant based in the Stonehaven office. I have over 25 years of experience and work with a wide range of farming and rural business clients, providing technical (crop and livestock), financial and business management, subsidy, agri–environmental and organic farming advice. This can either be as one to one advice, writing articles, delivering talks, teaching students, facilitating groups or supporting staff as I’m FBAASS, BASIS and FACTS accredited.
My career with SAC Consulting started in Shetland in 1997, before a move to the Elgin consulting office in Morayshire before moving to Aberdeenshire. This has provided me with a good understanding of agricultural systems throughout Scotland from hill, upland and crofting livestock-based systems to lowland arable systems.
A demand for organic farming advice in the 2000’s led me to study for my MSc in Organic Farming, and this knowledge has enabled me to utilise a holistic approach to farming and grassland (clover based) systems whether clients are farming conventionally, organically or regeneratively, with a focus on soil and nutrient management. I am also on the Scottish Organic Producers Association (SOPA) technical advisory committee and have lectured students on the PgDip course in Organic Farming at SRUC.
I am the Farm Advisory Service (FAS) programme topic lead for organic farming. This is a relatively new addition to the FAS programme, aiming to help farmers and or crofters contemplating conversion, as well as existing organic producers and those interested in agro-ecological approaches to farming (e.g. regenerative farming). Past outputs include the ‘Organics in Scotland’ video series which highlighted a range of organic farming businesses, showcasing the range of enterprises run by producers in Scotland from several inspiring farmers.
Out with work I run a small beef and sheep farm in partnership with my wife and I am a past Chairman of the Royal Northern Countryside Initiative (RNCI) teaching school children about food and farming in Northeast Scotland, as well as a past participant of the Scottish Enterprise’s Rural Leadership Programme. I am also a past director of The Royal Northern Agricultural Society (RNAS) and a member of my local grassland group, The North of Scotland Grassland Society (Norgrass). The society promotes good grassland farming, forage science and sustainable agriculture in the north of Scotland and hosts an annual regional silage competition.
Ewan Johnston, Principal Consultant, [email protected]
Posted by SAC Consulting on 19/10/2026
