Declaring his intention to "drag the veterinary medicines business into the 21st century", Kelso-based vet, Colin Sutherland, this week blew the whistle on the open secret of veterinary overcharging and revealed details of the new deal he is offering his own customers.
"I don't do 'subtle'. This may make me unpopular, but it needs said," said Mr Sutherland. "You would struggle to find another business in the land that hasn't changed beyond recognition in recent decades, but vets are still selling prescription-only medicines on terms set way back in the 1960's."
"Farmers are so accustomed to this old way of dealing with vets that they accept these awful terms - 50% mark-ups, sometimes 100%. This was OK for a wee farmer who wanted half a box of calf scour tablets, but it's quite unreasonable for a big Borders sheep farmer."
"I'd rather do a lot of business on a lesser mark-up, than a little business on a lot, so I've changed the deal."
Mr Sutherland ran a general farm practice in Lincolnshire for 27 years, before moving to Scotland 10 years ago to set up an exclusive horse practice.
At the turn of this year, after a plea from the farming son of one of his horse clients, he found himself compelled to return to the farm business.
"This particular farmer specialises in barley-fed bull beef and his biggest recurring problem is pneumonia. The vet he was using insisted on coming out each time there was a case and then selling him a small quantity of medicine at a 50% mark-up over wholesale.
I decided to offer an alternative deal. I asked him to work out what medicines he was likely to need over the season and supply that information to me on a list.
If that order amounted to £500, I would supply all of it at wholesale plus 7.5% cash, on delivery. He was delighted to accept that deal."
"If there is an unusual problem, or an emergency, of course I am there to deal with it, but is a nonsense to maintain the old system when so many POM's are needed in completely predictable quantities and at completely predictable times."
In particular, vaccines against calf scour, calf pneumonia and orf in sheep could and should, said Mr Sutherland, be made available to farmers on deals no different from those negotiated with seed, feed and fertiliser suppliers.
"This is the way modern business works. I'm not doing this to annoy the veterinary establishment. My motivation is trade, pure and simple."
From his standing start in farm practice this January, Mr Sutherland already has 10 farming customers on his books, all of whom, he says, are "very happy bunnies" as a result of the service they are getting.
There was, he said, a veterinary lull now that the lambing was over, but he fully expected to be busy with the new business when the pneumonia season started. "My answer to that will be to find a like-minded colleague -- any vet out there with the right experience and a commercial attitude should give me a ring."
Perhaps, in light of the recent damning Competition Commission report into the "complex monopolies" at work in the veterinary medicines supply chain, other vets might just be ready to accept that invitation.
"So what if the CC has recommended that pharmacies be given a level playing field to supply POM's? Even at an identical price, vets should be able to beat pharmacies out of sight, because we have the goodwill of our customers and added value that the pharmacies cannot offer.
"Sure, there may be some veterinary practices that cannot cope with the changes recommended by the CC and there might be wastage. But again, that is the way of business. I am just going with the tide," said Mr Sutherland.