A total of 14% more sheep were sold though Farm Stock Ltd between April 2016 to March 2017. This has pushed the 21-year-established co-op’s turnover up 22%, to £15.4m for the year.

“I am proud to say that hard work has meant we achieved £2.30 per lamb more than SQQ price in 2016/17,” Farm Stock chair Ian Watson is reported as saying.

Farm Stock has recently diversified by recruiting 150 dairy farmers in Ayrshire, Wigtownshire and Dumfriesshire in order to sell cull cows.