Reivers return to the sheep rustling trail

Public warned of health risks of meat

SCOTLAND has a l ong history of rustling, thanks to the country’s infamous reivers, who had their heyday in the 16th century – but now it seems sheep-stealing bandits are back with a vengeance.

The Sunday Herald has learned that Scottish farmers are struggling to deal with the increasing costs of rustling as organised thieves target large numbers of livestock across the country. With the price of meat on the rise, livestock is being stolen, slaughtered illegally and sold on the black market.

The rural crime wave is estimated to have cost Scottish farmers more than £ 250,000 in 2012, with farmers UK-wide having to foot a bill of more than £6 million. A standard sheep costs between £60 and £400.

Figures from NFU Mutual, which insures three-quarters of the UK’s farmers, show a 170% increase in rustling between 2010 and 2011 and a further 3.6% increase in 2012. The average cost of claims has also increased, indicating that more livestock is being taken in each raid.

A spokesman for NFU Mutual said: “Rustling is one of the world’s oldest crimes. Since the first cavemen kept goats, it has been a feature of farming. However, the worrying trend today is that, instead of small numbers being taken in an attack, we are seeing very large numbers of sheep being stolen.

“Until 2010, livestock rustling was at historically low levels, as rural thieves concentrated on easy pickings such as quad bikes, tractors and expensive power tools.

“Now, however, high meat prices appear to have led to a resurgence in livestock rustling. In the last year we have seen a worrying increase”

The insurer estimates that more than 69,000 sheep were stolen from UK farms in 2012, along with hundreds of cows and pigs and thousands of game birds, leading to warnings about the dangers of buying meat on the black market.

The Food Standards Agency in Scotland last year said anyone buying under-the-counter meat was “playing Russian roulette with their health”.