SCOTTISH FARMERS - many of them gathered at Ingliston for this year's Royal Highland Show - were today coming to terms with the result of the UK's EU membership referendum.

After decades of substantial financial support from the Common Agricultural Policy and barrier-free exports into a market of 500 million consumers, the news is that Scottish agriculture will now have to renegotiate its relationship with the world.

NFU Scotland said that there would now be significant ramifications and implications for Scottish food and farming, President Allan Bowie said: "The dramatic events of the past few hours will mark a period of great uncertainty for Scotland's farmers and crofters. What is also clear is that the role of the Union in representing our members' views and protecting their interests will rarely have been more important in our 103-year history.

"Farming and crofting are at the core of rural Scotland and the rural economy and our focus will very firmly be on ensuring that the negotiated exit from Europe and the Common Agricultural Policy and the domestic arrangements that are to replace them will see a profitable and competitive industry in Scotland.

"The vote for the UK to leave the European Union brings few certainties as to what will happen in the weeks and months ahead but an intense period of negotiation will begin and a negotiated exit from the EU is expected to take a minimum of two years.

"NFU Scotland will be at the centre of any discussions on new arrangements for our food and farming sector," he said. "There is a need for these discussions to commence quickly so that the many businesses who benefit from support from the CAP and value the markets we have established for our produce in Europe and further afield can plan for the future. Significant sectors of our industry are also very reliant on a workforce sourced from other parts of the EU and we need to establish any implications for their businesses.

"What will be key for Scottish agriculture will be delivery on the commitments made in the campaign about support levels for agriculture in the event of a Brexit vote and to seek reassurances on terms of trade with rest of Europe and worldwide in the future.

"With the resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron announced this morning, the political implications of the vote are huge. The political landscape across the UK is now in a period of flux and speculation is likely to be unhelpful.

"What is clear, is that there was strong support to remain in the EU across every part of Scotland and that was in stark contrast to the majority of the UK.

"There is considerable debate already as to what the EU referendum means with regards to any potential future vote on Scottish independence," he added. "It is also apparent that the UK vote to leave has wider ramifications for the future structure of the EU.

"We need to avoid knee-jerk reactions at this time. There has been a seismic shift in our political landscape in the last 24hrs and we need a period of stability – not least to allow our financial markets and economy to stabilise - before further major decisions should be made."

Quality Meat Scotland chairman Jim McLaren said: "QMS remains 100% committed to its core remit of working to shape a prospering and sustainable Scottish red meat industry. While there are still a great many unknowns in terms of the full implications of today's outcome, as an organisation we are in a strong position to adapt and continue to delivery for our industry in the changing environment in which we will be working.

"In the coming weeks the QMS board will be considering our response to the key implications of this week's decision and we will also be working closely with other organisations in our industry throughout the UK.

"As an industry in Scotland we have worked hard to build strong brands and to produce top quality products which have earned an iconic global reputation. These well-earned, robust foundations, including long-established relationships in export markets around the globe, ensure we are very well-placed to adapt and grow in the new political landscape as it unfolds."

Scottish Land and Estates said that it was vital that both the UK and Scottish governments now worked hard to provide 'clarity and certainty' to the nation's rural businesses and communities.

The organisation added that whilst the result will undoubtedly present tough challenges to rural Scotland, there was also a need for the rural sector to be ready to embrace future opportunities that arise from the outcome.

Chairman David Johnstone said: "Every individual and business across the UK will be digesting the referendum result and trying to forecast what it will mean for their own personal circumstances.

"The forthcoming weeks and months will undoubtedly be a time of flux but that is why we need the UK and Scottish governments to give a clear and resounding message that they stand firmly behind our rural areas and in particular, the farming and land-based enterprises that play such a key role in the countryside.

"Whilst there is an impact from European Union decisions on all our lives, arguably nowhere is the role of the EU felt more acutely than on Scotland's farms. We need to know that the CAP or its equivalent funding will continue in the short-term – ideally until the end of its present term at the end of 2020 – which will provide some necessary breathing space to plan beyond that period.

"The Prime Minister said this morning that the devolved governments would play a key role in shaping Britain's exit from the European Union and we will make sure our assistance is offered to the Scottish Government during this period."

SLaE added that work has already been undertaken on formulating policy in the event of Brexit and that it will look to discuss this with the Scottish Government in the coming days.

Mr Johnstone said: "The last decade has seen a lot of change for Scotland's rural enterprises and whilst a period of calm may have been preferable for some, we need to embrace the positive opportunities that will present themselves. Scotland's rural areas remain strong, vibrant and healthy and can continue to deliver economically, socially and environmentally.

"There is a lot of work ahead on EU exit discussions but there is a pressing need for parallel discussions to take place during this period to shape a new approach to support the rural sector. The nature of our exit is important but what is most important is developing a clear plan for rural Scotland."

Jeremy Moody, secretary and adviser to the Central Association of Agricultural Valuers said that disentangling 43 years of engagement with the EU will be a monumental project, but it was up to British businesses and advisers to seize the opportunity to shape the future.

"This is probably one of the most historic occasions of at least a generation," he said. "It changes the climate, not just the weather of where we're going."

EU regulations permeated every tributary of UK law, so it would take years to translate that into an independent British framework, he added. "I strongly suspect that we'll simply have an enabling statute that says EU legislation remains in force, purely for continuity – the task is too formidable."

Trade agreements were clearly going to be important, and it was to early to tell which model the UK would adopt, warned Mr Moody. "Our share of trade with the EU is slowly declining – it's at 45% now and on a 15-year forecast it's at 30%. But farmers are distinctively exporters to the EU and agricultural products face high import tariffs. That is an immediate issue to face up to."

The sharp drop in the value of the pound would help UK exporters and buoy agricultural commodity prices in the short-term, he added. "But we are heavily dependent on migrant workers: It's very easy to make the case for highly skilled workers but we need people on the farms, and they would fail a visa test, so we need to look very closely at that."