A LONGDON farmer is bidding to diversify in an attempt to get a better deal on his livestock.

Robert Thatcher, of Hillworth Farm, has applied to Malvern Hills District Council to change the use of one of his outbuildings.

He wants to install meat-cutting machinery in the building in order to be able to cut, package and sell the sheep and cattle on his farm.

If the planning application is successful, production could start around Christmas, or early in the New Year.

"At the moment, we send our cattle and sheep to the local market but, like everyone else in our position, we don't get much money for them," he said.

"We thought we would try and sell them for more of a premium.

"We want to produce high quality meat on a small scale. People will be able to see the product has been born and bred on the farm, and so it is fully traceable."

Mr Thatcher, who has taken a part-time job as a butcher to make ends meet, is hoping the move will enable him to keep the farm he inherited from his grandfather. It has been in his family for 150 years.