Two farmers from Anglesey have said they feel 'let down' by councillors after they rejected their £3m dairy project.
Childhood friends Eurig Jones and Owen Rowlands prepared a £3m investment to buy nearby farm Plas Llanfihangel, with new stock, parlour and sheds.
But Anglesey councillors accused the pair of laughing at the council by going ahead with the project without planning consent.
Mr Joneds and Mr Rowlands said they will take their case to appeal in Cardiff.
The pair said they had no choice but to go ahead without permission since they had loans to repay and cows to milk.
"I'd prefer a grilling from councillors than facing the wrath of the RSPCA if animal welfare had been compromised," they told the Daily Post.
"We had a strict timescale for paying back the loans and in the first year it had been a one-way street with money leaving the business.
"We employ two staff full-time, and two more part-time, and their jobs would have gone had we not pressed ahead."
But Anglesey councillor Lewis Davies said the tactics employed by the pair had brought 'shame and disgrace' on the farming sector.
"I support agriculture 100% - we need new sheds and new methods of farming - but the problem is the way they have handled it," he told the planning committee.
"They have laughed at us as officers and members of the county council. If this gets permission it will set a precedent and sheds will be erected all over the countryside."
The applicants have met agents to prepare an appeal to the planning inspectorate, which is due to be heard later in the year.
