Struggling farmers on the Orkney and Shetland islands are being urged to consider sending cattle to the mainland for grazing this winter.
The suggestion from consultant Alasdair Macnab, of AJM Agri, comes in the wake of reports some cattle are not being turned out at all and those that have been are being taken back in.
There are also reports of poor crops of silage and concerns there will not be enough forage for the winter.
“Solutions are not easy or cheap. We may need some thinking out of the box and some new approaches to wintering cattle,” said Mr Macnab.
“The dilemma is between the cost of feeding cattle all summer, making a good job of rearing the calves, getting cows back into calf and making enough silage to see herds through next winter or facing increased costs for next winter.”
One solution could be wintering beasts off the islands, claims Mr Macnab.
“This could bring benefits with getting cattle on to silage fields, getting condition on them, getting them back in-calf and having a crop of calves in good condition ready to sell in the autumn.”
It would reduce stocking density on the islands and allow the ground to rest over the winter, he added.
He has suggested various options for managing the cattle once they are away from the islands.
“Someone could be appointed to check cattle regularly and paid as part of the wintering costs, or stockmen could come down from Orkney or be employed locally to supervise the calving over a few wintering groups and to help with any husbandry jobs,” said Mr Macnab.
He warned moving the cattle would be expensive, but producers needed to compare it to the cost of buying in extra feed to the islands.
“Given the exceptional nature of this year it may be productive for island and industry farming representatives to open talks with Scottish Government to explore what assistance may be available for haulage,” said Mr Macnab.
“An effective solution needs to be developed soon with an eye to mitigating the knock-on effects of this summer which could last for a year or two.”
Responding to the plea, the Scottish Government said it would continue to look at what it could do to assist farmers and crofters on the islands.
A spokesman said: “Support is already available for farmers and crofters through Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 of the Common Agricultural Policy and the £12million in top up payments distributed at the beginning of June should provide some interim help.
“In response to a call from NFU Scotland, the Scottish Government, through Northlink Ferries, has reduced fares to enable animal feed to be transported to Orkney from the mainland at a reduced cost.
“In the future the new island rates for Beef Voluntary Coupled Support will also help farmers and crofters deal with the impact of external events, such as challenges presented by weather.”