Bradford has become embroiled in its own Falkland Islands conflict.

But this time the war of words is with the colony's own sheep farmers.

According to the islands' sole newspaper, the Penguin News, Falkland business leaders are proposing to market and sell their own wool directly, axing the traditional system of using Bradford-based merchants.

The Penguin reports the idea being put forward by the Falklands Rural Business Association, which said: "There are questions over Bradford's continued place in the world wool market."

It added the claims had "infuriated" Bradford merchants, who replied by saying the new system could result in poor-quality products and "a loss of confidence in Falklands wool."

The latest edition of the weekly paper states that two Bradford firms - DB Holdsworth Ltd and Falkland Wool Growers Ltd - both condemned the moves as "not in the interest of Falklands farmers".

As a traditional wool-trading centre, merchants in the city buy, sort and sell the product from across the globe.

But a proposal from the Falkland RBA, which has been approved in principle by its chief executive, seeks to scrap the status quo.

The scheme would see the RBA controlling the storage and testing of wool, with farmers marketing it over the internet.

Their goods would be transported via Uruguay, The Penguin states.

It adds that the proposal states: "If wool can be sold without going through Bradford then there would be savings in transport costs."

It continues: "The current dominance by Bradford is unsatisfactory, particularly given the high costs of transport within the UK.

"There are question marks over Bradford's continued place in the world wool market."

But the paper reports William Holdsworth, of Bradford-based DB Holdsworth Ltd, questioning if facilities on the island were up to the job. "There is a danger of wools of differing qualities or microns being put together which would lead to a lesser return for the Falklands farmer. There could be quality problems...and a loss of confidence in Falklands wool."

The Penguin reported him saying the claims about transport costs were "wholly inaccurate" and, without the merchant's knowledge, wool could be "left on the shelf".

DB Holdsworth and Falkland Wool Growers were both unavailable for comment.