We can thrive after subsidies

Isearched in vain last month for Kiwi farmers who pined for a return to government subsidies. On the contrary, every beef, sheep and dairy producer I met talked with pride about being nimble enough to react to global demands and signals, and their ability to make market-led decisions.

New Zealand farmers ooze a selfconfidence that borders on arrogance .

And they say they despise the EU’s support system that forces producers to farm in a way that doesn’t reflect what the market demands. They don’t mention “unfair competition” but they cynically hint that direct support allows European farmers to spend a few hours extra in bed in the morning. If only. Of course the previous generation of New Zealand producers went through hell to reach the position of comfort and stability that exists there today.

When government support was brutally withdrawn without warning 30 years ago the industry was cut off at the knees, bankrupt farmers took their own lives, and rural communities were decimated. No one has forgotten the hardship or the long road to recovery.

These days Kiwi farmers may not get hard cash in their bank accounts, but there is backing for research and promotion. After all, the agricultural industry is vital to the economy.

Government has forged trade deals and alliances with countries around the world that benefit farming. Just this week, the UK sheep industry was invited to consider collaborating on supplying new markets like the United States and Saudi Arabia.

In the UK the arguments in favour of subsidies are getting weaker by the day, quite apart from the lack of political will that would allow them to continue.

Would any farmer here choose direct support over a fair return from the marketplace? I think not. Scotland’s farmers’ union is bullish about the opportunities after 2019 and its leader Andrew McCornick says the ultimate aim is for every farmer to get a return from the market rather than support. But the transition will need care.

We should look forward to the day when Scottish producers are no longer at the mercy of an IT system that leaves them begging their banks for extended overdrafts or facing derision for being ‘subsidy junkies’. Farmers need and deserve a fair return from the market and no more cheap jibes from 12,000 miles away about handouts allowing them to take it easy in the morning.

These days Kiwi farmers may not get hard cash in their bank accounts, but there is backing for research and promotion.