The current outbreak of foot-and-mouth looks set to cost Scottish farmers more than the last one in 2001.

The current outbreak of foot-and-mouth looks set to cost Scottish farmers more than the last one in 2001.

That is because the restrictions on the movement of animals and the ban on exports in this outbreak have been imposed in the autumn, when hill farmers traditionally sell the bulk of their cattle and sheep.

With large numbers of animals trapped on hill farms and eating the winter grazing vital for the survival of breeding ewes, farmers are becoming increasingly alarmed.

Apart from the developing welfare crisis, there is also a major cash-flow problem caused by the lack of sales. That could be the last straw for many, because when sales do resume, there is every chance that the backlog of lambs will create a glut on the market and depress prices. Compounding that problem is the very real possibility that exports are unlikely to resume for three months.

Against that worrying backdrop, NFU Scotland is right to call for an urgent relaxation in Scotland to allow lambs and older "draft ewes" to be moved off the hills to farms on lower ground. More significantly, its call for a voluntary welfare cull scheme for small hill lambs is also correct.

"We are pressing the Scottish Government for a voluntary scheme that would allow farmers to send their small lambs for humane slaughter and disposal at designated abattoirs" said Jim McLaren, president of NFUS. "Farmers choosing that option will have to be fairly compensated", the union leader added.

McLaren has also suggested the establishment of a scheme to pay farmers who do not want to cull their lambs. This would help them to buy feed to keep the animals until the crisis is resolved.

To address the problems of liquidity created by the lack of sales, McLaren has also urged the Scottish government to bring forward the payment of subsidies such as the Less Favoured Area Support Scheme (LFASS) and the Single Farm Payment (SFP) that are due to be paid at the end of the year.

"We also need extra cash to compensate us for our losses. It should be possible to top up the LFASS payment or the beef calf scheme.

"Defra and the Treasury need to wake up to their responsibilities", he added.

That comment resonates with Scottish livestock farmers who are angry that Treasury cutbacks on research funding at Pirbright, Surrey, is the most likely cause of the outbreak. A recently published report strongly suggests that a broken drain was the most likely escape route for the virus.

This outbreak has led to only a fraction of animals being culled compared with the 2001 outbreak, when 5.57 million animals were slaughtered. The total cost to the taxpayer then was more than £8bn, and many rural businesses never fully recovered.

Thanks to the discreet disposal of slaughtered animals to rendering plants, there have been no funeral pyres to catch the headlines.

Despite the outward appearance that it is business as usual in the Scottish countryside, there is little doubt that Scottish farmers face greater financial losses than in 2001 and desperately need financial assistance.