Socio-cultural processes behind the differential distribution of organic farming in Denmark: a case study

Conversion to organic farming, along with its associated driving forces and barriers, has been explored intensively over the past decade, while studies on the distribution and impacts of local socio-cultural processes in relation to conversion to and diffusion of organic farming have been scarce. The concentration of organic farms in Denmark differs according to county and, moreover, there appears to be large within-county variation in the density of organic farms. The present study explores local aspects of conversion to organic farming and the factors that may help explain variation in density and concentration of organic farms within smaller areas. The study is based on nine qualitative interviews with organic farmers from two neighboring areas, referred to as “mainland” and “island,” respectively. Three farms were situated in the high-density area (mainland) and the remaining six in the low-density area (island). Furthermore, five advisors with connections to the area provided information with regard to their local experience and perceptions. Three main, and to some extent interacting, issues are discussed. The first is the price of land related to local scarcity of land, in the context of structural development and the effects of agricultural policies. The second is distance – both physical and social. Cooperation and exchange of experience among organic farmers was frequent on the mainland side, while isolation and lack of interaction was more common for the island farmers. Third, the role of the agricultural advisory service and the existence of champion farmers are important: pioneer farmers on the mainland have been supported by committed agricultural advisors, while lack of organic champion farmers and low priority granted to organic farming among agricultural advisors were found on the island. Marie-Louise Risgaard has an MSc within the field of organic agriculture. Her research interests are organic farming and rural development with the present occupation as innovative partner at a small-scale organic enterprise. In this capacity she is responsible for creating links between the organic enterprise, the gastronomic sector and organic markets, locally as well as nationally. Pia Frederiksen, PhD, is a geographer and senior scientist with research skills in rural development, sustainability, landscape analysis, and agri-environmental indicators. Pernille Kaltoft, PhD, is an environmental sociologist and senior scientist whose work focuses on organic farming and farmers’ perceptions. Dr. Kaltoft’s general research interests include values, perceptions, and views of nature related to agricultural and environmental issues.     

Foundations of production and consumption of organic food in Norway: Common attitudes among farmers and consumers?

In Norway, the production andconsumption of organic food is still small-scale. Research on attitudes towards organic farming in Norway has shown that most consumers find conventionally produced food to be good enough. The level of industrialization of agriculture and the existence of food scandals in a country will affect consumer demand for organically produced foods. Norway is an interesting case because of its small-scale agriculture, few problems with food-borne diseases, and low market share for organic food. Similarities between groups of consumers and producers of food, organic and conventional, when it comes to attitudes concerning environment, use of gene technology, and animal welfare have implications for understanding market conditions for organically produced food. The results of our study indicate that organic farmers and organic consumers in Norway have common attitudes towards environmental questions and animal welfare in Norwegian agriculture. Conventional farmers have a higher degree of agreement with the way agriculture is carried out today. Unlike organic farmers and consumers, conventional farmers do not see major environmental problems and problems with animal welfare in today's farming system. But like the organic farmers and consumers, and to a stronger degree than conventional consumers, conventional farmers renounce gene technology as a solution to environmental problems in agriculture. These results are discussed in relation to their importance for the market situation for organically produced foods.     

Converting or not converting to organic farming in Austria:Farmer types and their rationale

Reasons for converting to organic farming have been studied in a number of instances. However, the underlying rationale that motivates the behavior is not always made clear. This study aims to provide a detailed picture of farmers decision-making and illustrate the choice between organic and conventional farm management. Based on 21 interviews with farmers, a decision-tree highlighting the reasons and constraints involved in the decision of farmers to use, or not to use, organic production techniques was formulated. The accuracy of the decision-tree was tested through a written survey of 65 randomly sampled farmers. The decision-tree permits the identification of decision criteria and examines the decision-making process of farmers in choosing their farming method. It also allows for the characterization of farmer strategies and values, identifying five types of farmers: the committed conventional; the pragmatic conventional; the environment-conscious but not organic; the pragmatic organic; and the committed organic. The importance of taking into account heterogeneity in farmers attitudes, preferences, and goals and their impact on the choice of a farming method is emphasized.Ika Darnhofer is an Assistant Professor at the Institute of Agricultural and Forestry Economics at the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences Vienna. She received both her MSc and PhD in Agricultural Economics from the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences Vienna, working on issues of agricultural development in Africa. Her current research interests include economic and sociological analyses of factors that shape farmers land use decision-making behavior, with a particular focus on organic farming.Walter Schneeberger is a Full Professor of Farm Business Management and Head of the Institute of Agricultural and Forestry Economics at the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences Vienna. His current research interests include the economics of producing and processing agricultural products and farm business management for both conventional and organic farms.Bernhard Freyer is a Full Professor of Organic Farming and Head of the Institute of Organic Farming of the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences Vienna. His work on organic farming focuses on its agronomic aspects (plant cultivation, crop rotations, and soil fertility) as well as on the analysis of conversion to organic farming (planning process, farm development) and its potential for regional development.     

How organic farmers view their own practice: results from the Czech Republic

This paper addresses the development of organic agriculture in the Czech Republic, which is seen as a success story among post-communist countries. The relatively short history of organic farming and specific contextual factors raises questions about the nature and meaning of Czech organic farming. The goal of this study was to find out how farmers view their own practice, interpret its symbolic value, and construct its content. This empirical study uses Q methodology aimed at the identification of the collectively-shared perspectives belonging engaged actors. Data were gathered through semi-standardized interviews with Czech farmers registered in official organic scheme. The analysis emphasized three components, which are considered as three distinct perspectives possessed by organic farmers; that is, (1) organic farming as a way of life, (2) as an occupation, and (3) as a production of food of an alternative quality compared to conventional food. Each viewpoint entails a different understanding of what organic farming means; each then—when considered together—comprises the meaning of organic agriculture in the Czech Republic. The presented classification of the farmers holding the viewpoints contributes to the ongoing theoretical discussion regarding the nature of the current organic sector, its development and potential conventionalization.     

Capturing the Sustainability Agenda: Organic Foods and Media Discourses on Food Scares, Environment, Genetic Engineering, and Health

This paper undertakes a content analysis of newspaper articles from Australia, the UK, and the US concerned with a variety of issues relevant to sustainable food and agriculture from 1996 to 2002. It then goes on to identify the various ways in which sustainability, organic food and agriculture, genetic engineering, genetically modified foods, and food safety are framed both in their own terms and in relation to each other. It finds that despite the many competing approaches to sustainability found in scientific and agricultural production discourses, media discourses tend to reduce this complexity to a straightforward conflict between organic and conventional foods. Despite regular reporting of viewpoints highly critical of organic food and agriculture, this binary opposition produces discourses in which organic foods are seen as more-or-less synonymous with safety, naturalness and nutrition, and their alternatives as artificial, threatening, and untrustworthy. Particularly controversial food-related issues such as genetic engineering, food scares, chemical residues, and regulatory failure are treated as part of the same problem to which organic food offers a trustworthy and easily understood solution. Stewart Lockie is Associate Professor of Rural and Environmental Sociology and Associate Dean (Research) in the Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Health at Central Queensland University. His main research interests lie in the greening of food and agriculture, food commodity networks, and natural resource management. Recent co-edited books include Rurality Bites: The Social and Environmental Transformation of Rural Australia and Consuming Foods, Sustaining Environments.     

Contextualizing farmers’ attitudes towards genetically modified crops

Analyses of the role of technological development in agriculture are central to an understanding of social change in agri-food systems. The objective of this paper is to contribute to the formation of a broader perspective of how farmers are positioning themselves with respect to controversial agricultural technologies through an empirical analysis of Washington State farmers’ willingness or unwillingness to try Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) technology on their farms. The use of this type of biotechnology in farming has been criticized for its potential harmful effects on natural environments and socio-cultural systems, while proponents highlight the possibilities for increasing production with minimal use of other inputs. An analysis of the extent of farmers’ expressed willingness to use GMOs provides an opportunity to better understand how their diverse thoughts about controversial agricultural technologies are shaped not only by their own experiences but also by social context. The present study does this by analyzing data from a farm survey conducted on a random sample of farmers from across Washington State. The results show that the production practices farmers utilize and the market strategies they employ may be at least as useful as farmers’ socio-economic characteristics in explaining what types of farmers appear to be more or less interested in potentially using this technology. Furthermore, the relationship between level of formal education and willingness to use GMOs is not straightforward. It may hide differences between farmers with respect to where and how they received their formal education as well as the type(s) of knowledge they gained. It is argued that future research should recognize the diversity that exists in farmers’ interests vis-á-vis particular technologies and should also explore how these interests are shaped by farmers’ past and present social networks and life experiences. Kazumi Kondoh is a PhD candidate in the Department of Sociology at Washington State University. Her research interests include environmental policies, science and technology, and sustainable agriculture. Raymond Jussaume is an Professor and Chair, Community and Rural Sociology at Washington State University. His primary areas of interest are sociology of agriculture, development sociology, and political sociology.     

Sustainability and multifunctionality in French farms: Analysis of the implementation of Territorial Farming Contracts

Sustainable agriculture and ways to achieve it are important issues for agricultural policy. However, the concept of sustainability has yet to be made operational in many agricultural situations, and only a few studies so far have addressed the implementation process of sustainable agriculture. This paper provides an assessment of the Territorial Farming Contracts (TFC) – the French model for implementing sustainable agriculture – and aims to give some insights into the ways to facilitate the development of sustainable farming. Using a systems approach, the founding concept of the TFC model, an analysis has been made of the TFCs signed in the Midi-Pyrenees Region in south-western France. The results show that the first aspect of sustainability apparent in farmers’ projects referred to economic objectives. The environmental and social aspects were not foremost in the farming changes undertaken. In addition, the territorial dimension of the TFC was under-addressed. The majority of TFCs reveal a moderate or even low convergence with territorial priorities. These results are explained partly by the dominance of professional farming organizations in the implementation of TFC, and they imply that the organizational social dimensions of sustainability must not be neglected. Mohamed Gafsi is an assistant professor of farm management at the National School of Agronomic Training. He received his PhD in management science at the University of Bourgogne. His research interests include farm management and protection of natural resources, corporate environmental management, sustainable agriculture, and African family farms. Geneviève Nguyen is assistant professor in rural economics at the National Polytechnique Institute – National Superior School of Agronomy, in Toulouse. Her research interests include the dynamics of agrarian institutions in uncertain economies, the supply and organization of services in remote rural areas. Her research has been carried out in Europe, Africa, and Asia. She received her MA in Economics and her PhD in Agricultural Economics from the Ohio State University. Bruno Legagneux is assistant professor of farm management at the National Polytechnique Institute – National Superior School of Agronomy, in Toulouse. His research interests include farm management and the entry of young farmers into farming. Patrice Robin is an engineer agronomist. He received his diploma from the National Superior School of Agronomy, in Montpellier. He is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Toulouse. His research interests include agriculture and rural development, environmental issues, and food quality.     

Organic livestock production as viewed by Swedish farmers and organic initiators

Eleven organic and two conventionalSwedish livestock farmers and two initiators(non-farmers who took part in shaping earlyorganic livestock production in Sweden) wereinterviewed, using a semi-structured method.Respondents were selected through purposive andheterogeneous sampling with regard toconversion year, type of production, and sizeof farm. Conversion of the animal husbandrytook place between 1974 and 2000. All but twohad positive attitudes towards organiclivestock production and saw it as a wayforward for Swedish livestock production,although especially the latecomers did notperceive it as the only alternative. There wasa distinct difference in values between thepioneers, who converted their farms early, andthose converting later. Pioneer farmers sharedthe values of the initiators. They expressed amore ecocentric view emphasizing a systemicapproach, and displayed a more holisticapproach to questions, interpreting them inlarger frameworks. They also had a moreecocentric understanding of animal welfare. Thelater the conversion, the more important theeconomic reason for conversion appeared to be.Those converting later also tended to have amore superficial relationship to organicprinciples. However, the farmers also tended tobe more influenced by organic values the longerthey worked with organic farming.     

Can organic farmers be ‘good farmers’? Adding the ‘taste of necessity’ to the conventionalization debate

Recent decades have seen a rapid increase in the rate of conversion from conventional to organic farming, as organic farming shifted from an alternative production approach practiced by a small number of idealists, to the de facto alternative to mainstream conventional production. Although there has been considerable academic debate as to the role of agri-business penetration into the production and marketing chains of organic farming (‘conventionalization’), less is known about how the economic drivers of conventionalization are negotiated into practices at the farm level. Drawing on Bourdieu’s conceptualization of economic and cultural capitals, the direct connection between symbols of ‘good farming’ and the economic requirements of maintaining a viable farming business (i.e., the ‘taste of necessity’) is demonstrated. Findings indicate that conventional and organic farmers in the study sites identified a similar range of cultural symbols, but organic farmers emphasized different symbols within this range. This diversity and selectivity demonstrates the fragmentation and contestation of ideals resulting from economic challenges at the time of the study. Economic capital is important to the decision to consider conversion to organic farming, but formal conversion reflects re-weighting of forms of cultural capital. The author argues that recognition of the impact of economic pressures on conventional farming, which in the study sites often led to reduced input use rather than intensification, is missing from the conventionalization debate. The mainstreaming of organic farming production has presented conventional farmers with a set of alternative or re-weighted symbols and a crucible for reflexive consideration of their own standards and practices of farming.     

Farmer-Community Connections and the Future of Ecological Agriculture in California

While questions about the environmental sustainability of contemporary farming practices and the socioeconomic viability of rural communities are attracting increasing attention throughout the US, these two issues are rarely considered together. This paper explores the current and potential connections between these two aspects of sustainability, using data on community members’ and farmers’ views of agricultural issues in California’s Central Valley. These views were collected from a series of individual and group interviews with biologically oriented and conventional farmers as well as community stakeholders. Local marketing, farmland preservation, and perceptions of sustainable agriculture comprised the primary topics of discussion. The mixed results indicate that, while many farmers and community members have a strong interest in these topics, sustainable community development and the use of sustainable farming practices are seldom explicitly linked. On the other hand, many separate efforts around the Valley to increase local marketing and agritourism, improve public education about agriculture, and organize grassroots farmland preservation initiatives were documented. We conclude that linking these efforts more explicitly to sustainable agriculture and promoting more engagement between ecologically oriented farmers and their communities could engender more economic and political support for these farmers, helping them and their communities to achieve greater sustainability in the long run. Sonja Brodt is a former program evaluation specialist with the University of California Integrated Pest Management Program. Her current research focuses on extension and adoption of integrated pest management strategies by California growers and the impacts of pesticide safety training programs on farmworkers. Gail Feenstra is a food systems analyst at the University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (SAREP). She coordinates SAREP’s Community Development and Public Policy grants program and conducts outreach and education to academic and community-based groups to build their capacity and leadership skills for developing sustainable community food systems. Robin Kozloff is a social science researcher and consultant in agricultural and land use policy. Karen Klonsky is an extension specialist at the University of California at Davis in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics. Her research focuses on the economic viability of organic and sustainable farming systems as well as the evolution of the organic market. Laura Tourte is county director and farm advisor at the University of California Cooperative Extension in Santa Cruz County. Her research and extension activities currently focus on farm management and marketing for small-scale growers.     

Bringing Southeast Asia to the Southeast United States: New forms of alternative agriculture in Homestead,Florida

Immigrant farmers from Southeast Asia have brought knowledge of tropical fruit and vegetable production from their home countries to Homestead, Florida. They have developed a new style of farming, one that most closely resembles agricultural systems described as “homegardens.” Although biodiverse agricultural systems are generally thought to be commercially unviable, homegarden farmers successfully manage crop diversity as an economic strategy. By focusing on growing a mixture of specialty Southeast Asian herbs, fruits, and vegetables, the farmers have created their own economic niche and have shielded themselves from the competition of high-volume, single commodity producers. This paper shows that the Homestead homegardens constitute an alternative form of agriculture that is defined by their agroecological and socioeconomic attributes. It also shows that although the homegarden farms are a form of “alternative agriculture,” they do not operate outside of conventional, global systems of agricultural trade; rather the homegarden farms are embedded in global agriculture. The Homestead case problematizes the tendency to delineate between the global and local scales, and alternative and conventional sectors in agriculture today. This paper concludes that the emergence of the Homestead homegardens can only be understood by taking a place-based approach to studying the environment in which the homegardens are situated as well as identifying the large-scale influences on Miami-Dade County. Valerie Imbruce holds a PhD in plant sciences from a joint program between the Graduate Center of the City University of New York and the New York Botanical Garden. She has conducted research on global agricultural systems in New York City, south Florida, and Central Honduras.     

Public agricultural researchers: Reactions to organic,low input and sustainable agriculture

This paper offers a preliminary assessment of the reactions of public agricultural researchers to three terms used currently in the debate surrounding reduced input farming systems: organic, alternative, and sustainable agriculture. It is argued that these terms have been appropriated by the land grant system and their critical content removed to make them palatable to more mainstream agricultural researchers. A national sample of agricultural production researchers is explored, and disciplinary differences in attitudes toward the three terms are assessed. We conclude that sustainable and alternative agriculture do appear acceptable to the mainstream of production researchers, consistent with the hypothesis that they have been appropriated by the land grant system. Moreover, reasons why organic agriculture remains unacceptable are suggested.Aaron Harp is an Assistant Professor of Rural Sociology at the University of Idaho. His research focuses on issues of adoption in sustainable agriculture, and rural development.     

Social sustainability, farm labor, and organic agriculture: Findings from an exploratory analysis

Much of the attention by social scientists to the rapidly growing organic agriculture sector focuses on the benefits it provides to consumers (in the form of pesticide-free foods) and to farmers (in the form of price premiums). By contrast, there has been little discussion or research about the implications of the boom in organic agriculture for farmworkers on organic farms. In this paper, we ask the question: From the perspective of organic farmers, does “certified organic” agriculture encompass a commitment to “sustainability” that prioritizes social goals? Specifically, we aim to broaden our understanding of the relationship between social sustainability and organic agriculture by drawing attention to issues affecting farmworkers, whose labor and contribution tends to elude most discussions of organic agriculture. We present findings from a survey of organic farmers in California about the possible incorporation of social standards into organic certification criteria. Our findings suggest that, at best, lukewarm support for social certification within organic agriculture exists among certified organic farmers in California. They also question expectations that organic agriculture necessarily fosters social or even economic sustainability for most of the farmers and farmworkers involved. However, we also find exceptions to the patterns evidenced in our survey. In-depth interviews with select organic farmers demonstrate that there are individuals whose practices are atypical and demonstrate that, under some circumstances, an organic production system can be at once environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable.     

Environmental beliefs and farm practices of New Zealand farmers Contrasting pathways to sustainability

Sustainable farming, and waysto achieve it, are important issues foragricultural policy. New Zealand provides aninteresting case for examining sustainableagriculture options because gene technologieshave not been commercially released and thereis a small but rapidly expanding organicsector. There is no strong governmentsubsidization of agriculture, so while policiesseem to favor both options to some degree,neither has been directly supported. Resultsfrom a survey of 656 farmers are used to revealthe intentions, environmental values, andfarming practices for organic, conventional,and GE intending farmers. The results show thatorganic and conventional farmers are relativelysimilar but contrast to GE intending farmers,especially with respect to perceivedconsequences of each technology. While 75%of farmers have not yet made a commitmentto either technology, one fifth were GEintending and one quarter may become organic.Organic farmers have different attitudes tonature, matched in part by conventionalfarmers. In terms of policy for sustainableagriculture, the results suggest that organicand conventional farmers are incrementallymoving towards agroecological sustainabilitywhile GE intending farmers are committed tointensive production methods of which GEproducts are potentially important. GEintending farmers reject incrementalism infavor of a revolutionary technological fix forsustainability concerns in agriculture.Overall, the results show that there areclearly two different paradigms ofsustainability among farmers. Policies that areseeking to achieve sustainable agriculture needto address the tensions that span the differentparadigms.     

Understanding how farmers choose between organic and conventional production: Results from New Zealand and policy implications

Research on organic farmers is popular but has seldom specifically focused on their motivations and decision making. Results based on detailed interviews with 83 New Zealand farmers (both organic and conventional) are presented by way of a decision tree that highlights elimination factors, motivations, and constraints against action. The results show the reasons that lie behind farmers' choices of farming methods and highlight the diversity of motivations for organic farming, identifying different types of organic and conventional farmers. Policies to encourage organic production should focus on attitudes, technology, and finances.     

The In Situ Conservation of Rice Plant Genetic Diversity: A Case Study from a Philippine Barangay

The conservation of rice plant genetic diversity is particularly important for resource-poor farmers in economically marginal areas of the Philippines. This paper discusses the state of rice plant genetic diversity in the Philippines and the reasons behind the decrease in diversity witnessed over the last 30 years. A case study describes the in situ management of rice plant genetic diversity by resource-poor farmers from the Philippine island of Bohol, throughout the traditional, green revolution, and post-green revolution periods. This analysis demonstrates that farmers tend to favor genetically heterogeneous varieties that adapt to varied environments. The case study also reviews an NGO-sponsored agricultural biodiversity project that demonstrates that rice plant genetic diversity can be increased by empowering farmers – providing them with access to varieties, knowledge of varietal trials, varietal selection, and varietal breeding, as well as increasing the linkages they have with other farmers and institutions. David Carpenter is a PhD candidate in the School of Resources, Environment and Society at the Australian National University. His current research focuses on organic rice farming, social capital, and agricultural change in the Philippines. He recently published an article in Agriculture and Human Values 20(2) on the transition from high input agriculture to organic agriculture by resource-poor farmers from the Philippine Island of Bohol.     

The Use of Herbs in Pastures: An Interview Survey Among Bio-Dynamic and Organic Farmers with Dairy Cattle

Lack of knowledge about the effects of herbs in pastures and the frequency of their use by today's organic farmers has limited the development of new methods to improve animal health compatible with organic farming principles. Understanding farmers' agricultural practices is an early step in a participatory research process. With this in mind, we conducted a two-tiered, semi-structured survey of Danish organic farmers with dairy cattle to begin documenting their practices. Out of 350 farmers, 255 completed a mailed questionnaire – a response rate of 73%. Of these participating farmers, 66 (26%) confirmed their use of herbs in pastures. Caraway was sown at an average rate of 500 g of seed per hectare by 60 (91%). Of these, 32 used solely caraway, while 7 used it in combination with parsley. Twenty-one used caraway together with herbs other than parsley. Six used one or more herbs, not including caraway, such as chicory, chervil, dill, fenugreek, great burnet, and salad burnet. Further details concerning cultivation, convictions, observed effects, and information sources were obtained through telephone interviews. The results of this study would indicate that more research in this field is called for. Naja W. Smidt is a M.Sc. student in agricultural sciences at the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Denmark. Leon Brimer is an Associate Professor of chemical food safety at the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Denmark. His research focuses on the interface between chemistry and biology with special emphasis on aspects of cultivation, processing, and use of plants with physiologically active components (toxins).     

Regulating sustainability in the coffee sector: A comparative analysis of third-party environmental and social certification initiatives

Certification and labeling initiatives that seek to enhance environmental and social sustainability are growing rapidly. This article analyzes the expansion of these private regulatory efforts in the coffee sector. We compare the five major third-party certifications – the Organic, Fair Trade, Rainforest Alliance, Utz Kapeh, and Shade/Bird Friendly initiatives – outlining and contrasting their governance structures, environmental and social standards, and market positions. We argue that certifications that seek to raise ecological and social expectations are likely to be increasingly challenged by those that seek to simply uphold current standards. The vulnerability of these initiatives to market pressures highlights the need for private regulation to work in tandem with public regulation in enhancing social and environmental sustainability. Laura T. Raynolds is Professor of Sociology and Co-Director of the Center for Fair & Alternative Trade Studies (http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/Sociology/cfats/index.html) at Colorado State University. She has published extensively on organic and Fair Trade certification and globalization and has an edited volume forthcoming, Raynolds, L. T., D. Murray, and J. Wilkinson (eds.) (2007) Fair Trade: The Challenges of Transforming Globalization. London: Routledge Press. Douglas Murray is Professor of Sociology and Co-Director of the Center for Fair & Alternative Trade Studies at Colorado State University. His research and publications focus on global certification and regulatory initiatives, development, environment, and pesticide issues particularly in Latin America. Andrew Heller is PhD Candidate in Sociology and student affiliate of the Center for Fair & Alternative Trade Studies at Colorado State University. He is researching the impacts of certification on Guatemalan small scale coffee producers for his dissertation.     

Losing ground: Farmland preservation,economic utilitarianism,and the erosion of the agrarian ideal

The trajectory of the public discourse on agriculture in the twentieth century presents an interesting pattern:shortly after World War II, the manner in which farming and farmers were discussed underwent a profound shift. This rhetorical change is revealed by comparing the current debate on farmland preservation with a tradition of agricultural discourse that came before, known as agrarianism. While agrarian writers conceived of farming as a rewarding life, a public good, and a source of moral virtue, current writers on farmland preservation speak of farming almost entirely in utilitarian terms describing its productive capacity and its economic returns. Proponents of farmland preservation use essentially the same underlying framework as critics of preservation:n economic utilitarian paradigm that purports to eschew normative values and evaluate land use decisions based on economic criteria only. I argue that, despite their good intentions, farmland preservationists are doomed to piecemeal victories at best, because their arguments, which rely on a utilitarian justification and disregard the agrarian ethic, are inadequate. Without expanding its focus beyond farmland to encompass farming and farmers, the movement risks losing both integrity and effectiveness.Matthew J. Mariola recently received his Masters degree in the Land Resources program at the Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison. His research focuses on agrarian philosophy and farmer identity among conventional and organic farmers.The errors of politicians ignorant of agriculture can only rob it of its pleasures, and consign it to contempt and misery.– John Taylor, 1813     

Victual Vicissitudes: Consumer Deskilling and the (Gendered) Transformation of Food Systems

A considerable literature addresses worker deskilling in manufacturing and the related loss of control over production processes experienced by farmers and others working in the agri-food industry. Much less attention has been directed at a parallel process of consumer deskilling in the food system, which has been no less important. Consumer deskilling in its various dimensions carries enormous consequences for the restructuring of agro-food systems and for consumer sovereignty, diets, and health. The prevalence of packaged, processed, and industrially transformed foodstuffs is often explained in terms of consumer preference for convenience. A closer look at the social construction of “consumers” reveals that the agro-food industry has waged a double disinformation campaign to manipulate and to re-educate consumers while appearing to respond to consumer demand. Many consumers have lost the knowledge necessary to make discerning decisions about the multiple dimensions of quality, including the contributions a well-chosen diet can make to health, planetary sustainability, and community economic development. They have also lost the skills needed to make use of basic commodities in a manner that allows them to eat a high quality diet while also eating lower on the food chain and on a lower budget. This process has a significant gender dimension, as it is the autonomy of those primarily responsible for purchasing and preparing foodstuffs that has been systematically undermined. Too often, food industry professionals and regulatory agencies have been accessories to this process by misdirecting attention to the less important dimensions of quality. JoAnn Jaffe teaches rural, environmental, and development sociology, the sociology of gender, and theory in the Department of Sociology and Social Studies of the University of Regina. Michael Gertler teaches rural sociology, the sociology of communities, and the sociology of agriculture in the Department of Sociology at the University of Saskatchewan. He holds a cross appointment in the Centre for the Study of Co-operatives.