The amount of money that Scottish farmers owe to banks has reached a record high, with the figure increasing up to 5% over the past year.
The total outstanding loans from banks to Scottish agriculture was £2.32 billion, according to the figures. This was £113 million (five per cent) higher than the previous May.
The figure excludes an estimated £1.1 billion of liabilities from hire purchase, leasing, family members and other sources.
Debt levels are the highest they have ever been since records began in 1972.
The Scottish government deflected criticism of the figures, and said the fact banks were still lending to farmers was a "sign of confidence in the sector".
However, Scottish Conservative rural affairs secretary Peter Chapman said the SNP's "catastrophic" management of CAP payments were to blame.
“These figures show the financial state of farming businesses in Scotland has never been worse.
“Yet at a time you’d think the Scottish Government would step in to help, ministers have only made the situation worse.
“The SNP’s catastrophic management of CAP payments starved the rural community of hundreds of millions of pounds. Only now are we beginning to see the financial impact of that on businesses right across the country.
“The SNP must address these figures urgently and set out what it intends to do to help this vital sector recover. If it fails, the whole country will pay the price.”
Liberal Demcrat MSP Mike Rumbles echoed this, saying: “SNP ministers have bungled their handling of the rural economy time and time again. It is no surprise that when farmers do not trust the Scottish government to deliver farm payments or loans, they are forced to increase bank borrowing.”
'Flogging a dead horse'
The figures come after problems with a new IT system caused lengthy delays to the delivery of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) payments in Scotland.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon's government had to ask for an extension to the deadline of paying EU subsidies to farmers.
Ms Sturgeon apologised to farmers for 'failures' in her government's subsidy programme.
She said: "I want to assure you...there's no complacency on the Scottish government's part about this matter.
"We have already apologised and we do so again today to farmers for the failures that have been experienced in the system and I guarantee that we will continue to give this matter our full focus and attention to ensure that farmers get the service that they deserve."
A 'highly critical' report into the £178m IT system has created a rift between MSPs and current Rural Affairs Secretary Fergus Ewing.
Farming leaders have previously asked whether the government is "flogging a dead horse" by sticking with its IT system for delivering CAP support.
And NFU Scotland said every farmer will remember 2016 as a year when the Scottish government's 'flawed IT system failed to deliver' the subsidy CAP payments, 'damaging' the rural economy.
Former President of NFU Scotland Bowie said: "The level of frustration and lack of trust in Scottish Government's ability to properly deliver payments across all schemes in a timely manner remains unprecedented."
