During the first six months of this year, 27 herds ceased milking - leaving Scotland with just 1,145, which is down by over 200 on three years ago. However, having lost those 27 herds so far this year, the actual number of cows declined by only 1,549.

This is clearly due to the fact that those farmers who continue to milk cows have tended to increase their herd size. The average herd size in Scotland is 136 cows, an increase of one on the year. In addition, the number of herds recording their cows rose to 643, which means that 67 per cent of the national herd is now recorded - an all-time high.

Ayrshire remains the county with most herds, at 236 with a total of 28,613 cows. However, in numerical terms Dumfries-shire leads the way with 29,385 cows on 193 farms. Wigtownshire has 23,087 cows on 153 holdings.

Lanarkshire comes next with 164 farms and 16,974 cows. That contrasts with East Lothian, Banffshire and Inverness-shire, which each have only one farm milking cows.

Jack Lawson, the secretary of the SDCA, said: "Despite the serious reduction in the number of herds to 1 July and the fact that we know many more large herds have already indicated their exit before the end of the year, there is now a more positive attitude among those remaining in milk production.

"After ten years of practically no investment because of little or no profit, the recent increase in returns off-farm has heralded many more inquiries about replacing parlours and upgrading cubicle housing.

"However, milk buyers should be aware that the present improvement in price has only gone part of the way to ensure a sustainable supply of fresh milk. At least 22p per litre ex-farm is required to instil the confidence of producers to invest in the future.

"This is not unreasonable when auction milk in Northern Ireland is now up to 29p per litre and there are reports of other deals being done at over 30p."

CALL TO REJIG MEAT HYGEINE

YESTERDAY'S board meeting of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) saw members agree that there is a need for a more co-ordinated approach to meat inspection.

A statement said: "The board fully endorsed the principle that meat hygiene regulation should be more closely aligned with the rest of the food chain, adopting a more risk and evidence-based approach to regulation, inspection and enforcement."

Source: Scotsman