Sir,

Jim Walkers' page last week was great reading I found myself nodding all the way through it but surely he is flogging a dead horse!

There is a case for looking after the vulnerable farming communities in Scotland but for 90% of us, we are on our own. It's not quite as bad as what happened in NZ in 1986 when all subsidies were removed overnight but we now find ourselves in the situation of having the lowest subsidy and lowest commodity price in Europe and we don't have the French fighting our corner!

So what is the answer?

As Scotland doesn't have a plan for us that makes it even more difficult but it will require something radical and there will be pain. The frightening thing for me is the number of farmers leaving the industry and they are not dead wood most of them are probably better at it than me!

To me we have to change the way we buy food the less well off people in society get food vouchers but let's say the other 75% have to pay a fair price for the food they buy and if you live in Scotland it should be given priority then the UK and then our closest neighbours!

We need a plan to produce as much of the food that we buy in the supermarkets in this country using green energy to heat polytunnels etc etc

We need to work with the supermarkets but they need to work with the farmers in a much more open way telling us what they think could work in certain areas.

My biggest fear is food security it will only take a big eruption from one of Iceland's volcanoes and the sun to be blocked for a couple of years and we will have a real problem.

Let's be world leaders in self sufficiency and help to encourage young people into food and farming because let's face it we can't do without it !!!

Ted Brown, Millairies, Sorbie.