Economy
Gigha's economy is largely dependent on livestock farming, tourism and some limited fishing. There have been some moves to diversify the economy since the community buy-out. There is also a fish farm on the island, and small scale fishing.
365 hectares (900 acres) of arable land are farmed and relative to its size it is the most fertile and productive island in Scotland. Ayrshire cattle are kept on the island and goat's cheese is also produced. The Achamore creamery was closed during the 1980s, but has been successively revived.
In October 2006 it was announced that the population had reached 150 - a rise of more than 50 per cent since the 2002 buy-out. Willie McSporran, former chairman of the Heritage Trust, was quoted as saying: "The trust turned 300 years of population decline on its head by encouraging new development and the growth of the local economy. A sign of the surge of people wanting to relocate to Gigha is that we are struggling to meet the demand for housing despite building 18 new homes."
The issues of island ownership are not unique to Gigha and consequently the island has been highlighted in an edition of the BBC series, Countryfile, which is the principal television forum for countryside issues in the United Kingdom.
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