A farmer who has had thousands of pounds worth of cattle stolen fears they will be sold on the black market.
About £32,000 worth of cattle have been stolen from two farms in Aberdeenshire in recent weeks.
Police are now contacting marts, abattoirs, and other relevant bodies, such as the Food Standards Agency, in an attempt to catch the culprits.
And last night one of the farmers, who did not want to be named, admitted he thought the 20 beasts would be sold illegally for meat.
Three Limosin, two Simmental and a British Blue cow were taken from fields between Blackburn and the Hatton of Fintray between June 27 and July 8.
A further 14 Charolais cows were later stolen from fields near Monymusk and Tillyfourie, on July 27.
The farmer said: “They’ve all got their ID tags on them, so they should be easy to spot.
“I’m worried they’ll be sold onto the black market for their meat.”
The National Farmers’ Union to support those targeted by the thieves, and called on the government to provide more funding so police could carry out more rural patrols.
NFU’s north-east regional manager, Lorna Patterson, spoke to the farmers yesterday.
“To say the farmer is concerned would be a huge understatement,” she said.
“He has not slept for five nights, he is worried about his family and his property.
“He is desperate for anyone who may know something to come forward to the police.”
Constable Wayne Francis, who is investigating the theft, urged anyone who may have seen anything suspicious in the area to come forward.
He said: “We’re circulating details of these cattle to the relevant agencies – the marts, abattoirs, and others who would need the cattle numbers to deal with them.
“We’re urging all farmers, certainly in Garioch and further afield, to be vigilant and to report any suspicious activity.
“This has a big impact on the business of these farmers – their livelihoods have been stolen from them.
“It’s not going to be easy to get away with this number of cows, they would certainly have needed a cattle float or something similar.
“We’ve had quite a good response from the public so far, but I would appeal for anyone who with information to come forward.”
