The Courier understands deliberate fireraising has not been ruled out.
A huge blaze which raged for over eight hours and ripped through a £10 million Angus abattoir site may have been started on purpose.
Police said the weekend fire at the newly-refurbished plant in Brechin is being treated as “unexplained” but it is understood there are strong suspicions it was deliberate.
Firefighters arrived shortly after 4am to find two industrial units well alight.
More than 40 firefighters in 12 appliances, including aerial and special support vehicles responded.
The initial indications are that the pig production line has been unaffected but alternative arrangements are being made to send around 6,000 pigs a week to England to be processed until the Brechin plant is repaired.
The Quality Pork Ltd (QPL) abattoir officially opened in September after a multi-million expansion described as a “critical part” of a plan to “secure the long-term future of the Scottish pig industry”.
For the full story, see Monday’s Courier
Brechin abattoir blaze may have been started deliberately