- Re: The view from a UK organic veg farm Archived Message
Posted by dereklane
on October 11, 2020, 9:45 am, in reply to "Re: The view from a UK organic veg farm"
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Same thing here; there doesn't seem to be a massive profit margin, but there is money spare (you know, old money), and in any other business, you front your own money till it turns a profit. The excuse is, the profit margins are low so proper paid labour isn't an option. I don't buy that. Labour costs in any ideal should come first because the most important asset is the worker. Particularly for quality of work. I've suggested the cooperative approach but it was an instant subject change. At heart landowners are still empire builders, and cynically I think even the idealistic approach (of good food, farmed ethically) is an advertising tool more than a way of life for most of them. During lockdown I used a chunk of land to grow veg, with the idea everyone there would put work in and the veg was for everyone. They left me to it, until things started to grow then suggested they could be selling what I'd grown (where they would share the profit of course!). That wasn't my agreement though, so I collected weekly 5-6 grain sacks of veg and shared them out in town and have been doing that since mid June till very recently. the point with that is they saw my labour as being free and the potentially money to be made as clear profit. I preferred to keep things simple by writing off my own labour along with their profit  I don't think I'll grow there next year despite all the infrastructure work I put in. They probably don't want me anyway, too ornery and stubborn for compromise toward capitalist motivations. Might just get another allotment. The sad thing is There is no perceived value in labour and skill in sustainable farming even at such places. I do think that for veg produce the most workable model is the humble allotment. I still am impressed with the old socialist gardeners (now mostly gone) up here that refused the offers from council in the 70s to buy their allotments because it would affect successive generations of gardeners. It rare to hear of acquisition of property and profit rejected in favour of ethics! Bit of a ramble there.. Derek |