A ring of truth as co-op raises profit

Pre-tax profit rose in the year ended 31 July 2010 to 73,809 in comparison with 20,115 in 2009. Turnover in core trading in labour and machinery sharing rose to 12.58 million, 1.57 per cent above last year. In commodity trading, the increase was 3.64 per cent above last year, ending up at 14.25m.

Ringlink chairman Mark Ogg said he believed the figures proved that members were increasingly using the co-operative to reduce the volatility and uncertainty which now exists in the farming industry.

"We are seeing unusual trading patterns but by using Ringlink to source a wider variety of products, members are now benefiting from bulk buying," he said.

"This past season has also been marked with extremes of weather, one example being the very cold and snowy January and February where the access to ring machinery and labour helped get feed and fuel on to otherwise isolated farms."

Although not on this year's accounts, managing director Graham Bruce said the poor harvest weather this autumn in the North-east of Scotland provided another example of how Ringlink could help farmers operating in difficult conditions.

Commenting on the increased turnover, Bruce said that he was encouraged that the increase was derived from volume and not just the price and also that members were gradually realising the benefits from sourcing their inputs through Ringlink.

Ringlink's totally owned subsidiary, Mearns and Angus Services, which provides labour and also caters for all the member's training needs, also produced very positive trading figures with turnover up to 2.89m, a rise of 188,877.

The labour side of the business has seen a 6 per cent rise in demand with the training business showing an 11 per cent increase. One key driver for both the labour and training divisions has been the ability to provide a service to non-agricultural businesses.

Ringlink, which covers from the Moray Firth to the Tay, has a membership of 2,463 compared with 2,350 in July 2009.