More than just farming: LIFE AFTER BREXIT

by Dr Dirk Troskie, dirkt@elsenburg.com

LLiving without European Union (EU) subsidies has been a recurring question asked by farmers in the United Kingdom (UK). The first time the author encountered the question was during a “Farming without subsidies” conference in New Zealand in 1993. The main message was that the Kiwis farm as they play rugby: ruthlessly, while using the limits of the (international trade) rules to their own advantage. The second time was during the 10th congress of the International Farm Management Association (IFMA) in 1995 at Reading in the UK. At this event, the UK farmers had a blasé attitude: we do not need the subsidies, but as they are available, we will take them, thank you very much (or “skep as dit pap reën”). This seemed to occur with regularity during several subsequent IFMA congresses and only started to change significantly at the 21st IFMA congress in Edinburgh in 2017. A detailed account of the observations from this congress appeared in the March and June 2018 editions of AgriProbe In summary, the average UK farmer had high hopes of favourable trade relations with the EU being maintained (subsequently proven to be not as straightforward as expected). Farmers had to accept that the subsidies under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the EU would be replaced by a different policy focused on environmental matters. In response, UK farmers are “Brexit-proofing” their operations in the following ways:

• Becoming bigger

• Farming with free energy (wind and water)

• Focusing on people (tourism)

• Diversifying into less disruption-vulnerable farming enterprises

The series of papers concluded with the observation that demonstrating how farming without subsidies can be done, could become a farming tourism activity for South African entrepreneurs. These trends were recently confirmed by The Economist (2021). The number of farming units in England has declined by 20% over the past decade as smaller farms merge into bigger ones. Furthermore, 65% of farms in England now do more than just grow crops or raise livestock; this has increased from 58% in 2013. Some of the new activities are natural extensions of existing farming activities (e.g. home deliveries of farm products or milk-vending machines in town) whereas others open the farm gates to tourists. A farm in Wiltshire provides accommodation in log cabins, yurts, and bell tents and allows activities such as yoga, wild swimming, and sheep herding, which is apparently quite popular among young professional people. Another opened an outdoor theatre. Others share the unique elements of a particular farm such as speedboat trips on a local lake. Several farms are responding to more recent trends, often associated with, or in reaction to, the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). For instance, one farmer is creating a natural burial site, and another provides connectivity, and allows longerterm residents to do professional work from the farm.

Many of these initiatives should ring a bell to the South African ear; we are experiencing similar trends for reasons of our own (a topic for a paper of another day). In several cases farmers are starting to think differently

Sources

about the potential of their farmland and how to put it to multiple use to generate various income streams. A good example is a recent visit to a farm in the Roggeveld where the author was welcomed by the farmer using the words, “feel free to walk or drive anywhere on the farm and follow the signposts to the magnificent view from the escarpment. Tonight, I will show you the stars” (the view and the stars being two unique characteristics of this farm). A previous generation would never have uttered these words, having grown up in an environment where “jy kannie vreemde mense op die plaas toelaat nie! Hulle sal net die drade plattrap en die hekke ooplos …”. Or is this wat the long-term future of farming is truly all about? Not only being a cultivator of the land, but being an entrepreneur with a farm as primary asset?

The Economist. 2021. Why farms are moving into solar energy, campsites, and natural burials. The Economist, Jun 12th (2021) edition.

Troskie, DP. 2018. Brexit as seen by UK farmers (Part 1): AgriProbe 15(1):24-27

Troskie, DP. 2018b. Brexit as seen by UK farmers (Part 2): AgriProbe 15(2):28-31

AP