Yesterday
I read an article in the Metro that touched a nerve; and whilst I am of course devastated
that Tom Cruise will keep his £180 million pound fortune, that was not it.
No,
the story that caught my attention was on the sad state of British farming and
the dire need for more young people to enter into the Industry.
Some
might find my interest in this matter startling. I was born in London and am a
city girl at heart- I even enjoy the tube. Nevertheless, at the age of five my
family moved to the depths of Suffolk, a land of Labradors and Land Rovers,
where I, rather unwittingly, received an education in the rural way of life.
Now
I know that being intermittently woken by a combine harvester throughout my formative
years does not me a farming expert make. However, I suspect many will agree
with me that the industry has received its fair share of bad press and perhaps
more than its share of media and public relations disasters.
In
1988 the British egg industry was thrown into crisis when Edwina Currie made
the unqualified announcement that the majority of British eggs contained Salmonella.
Less than a decade later, and the beef
industry was in similar turmoil. With the nation in the grip of BSE fear, MP
John Gummer decided to very publicly feed his four-year-old daughter a beef
burger in what has become one of the most spectacular PR failures in the
history of agriculture. Not only did the move illustrate Gummer’s own
stupidity, but also it implied a gun-ho governmental attitude, which left
people wondering whether following regulation guidelines was enough to ensure
their health.
In
recent years things have got slightly better. The rise of the yuppie framer has
been a phenomenon I have watched with interest, as high profile advocates of
the rural way of life up sticks and head for Cornwall/ Dorset/ the Cotswolds
for a life of foraging and organic rare-breed nurture. A number of TV case studies with high profile
participants have highlighted the trend. Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall , perhaps
the pioneer, has since been followed by many others, including Jamie Oliver’s
mate Jimmy, who’s thoughtfully named ‘Jimmy’s Farm’ is not far from my family’s
home in Suffolk.
Although
I am very much a supporter of this type small –scale production, and am thrilled
that urban farming and self-sustainment are going through such a renaissance, I
am dismayed that large scale agriculture remains untouched by the popularity of
this niche offshoot. But am I surprised?
As
I write this, one ear is on the news, where reports of farmers marching on
Whitehall in protest of falling milk prices dominate the headlines. When the prevailing message is one of
hardship and frustration, spoken by a stereotypically aging, rotund and
bedraggled industry representative, is it any wonder that young people are
giving farming a wide birth?
Having
been bought up amongst farmers, I am more than aware of the individual benefits
of professional farming- a healthy lifestyle, working outdoors and a slightly
archaic, but still evident, prominence amongst the local community. If the
farming industry is serious about attracting more young people to take up the
farming mantel, they need to get PR savvy. Move agricultural PR on from crisis
management and start to proactively engage with a relevant audience. Get
decent, passionate representatives and shout about how great it is.
By
Polly Robinson
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