Saturday, March 30, 2024

BLOG: Time for some old-time values

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Farmers need some old-fashioned value to take them into a radically and rapidly changing future.
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Global events in the past week show we need to be able to respond rapidly to sudden and unexpected developments.

The trade and now currency war between the United States and China has escalated and Brexit is daily thrown into more confusion.

Then there’s the Germans. They have a value-added tax, similar to our goods and services tax, set at 19%. But most foodstuffs get a partial exemption and pay only 7%. It has been seriously suggested there meat should face the full 19% because it’s not environmentally friendly.

We can expect more of the same with international brinkmanship hampering progress on resolving such issues.

But they have the potential to throw our markets into disarray. Those selling food to China should be okay in the near future but anyone selling to the construction industry, think logs and strong wool, is less comfortable. And while Germany is not our biggest customer it will cause problems for sheep meat and venison, already near the price resistance level, and is a sign of things to come.

These events and others again show the value of having good trade agreements, free or otherwise, locked in with big customers. The British are being told the US is ready to sign a trade deal the minute they leave the European Union but, despite fears of post Brexit food shortages, might find the items on the US menu unpalatable.

Meanwhile our free-trade talks with Europe are not going well. Their negotiators are digging in on agriculture and political pressure is mounting to give no more concessions to third countries. Irish beef farms are holding mass protests against low prices caused by Brexit and what they call substandard beef from South America. The EU has allocated €100 million to placate them but they want €1 billion.

These are the reason farmers need strong, forthright leadership from their sector and from processors, exporters, bureaucrats and politicians.

They are already feeling got at by a misinformed and misguided public, by new regulation and by banks.

That’s where the old-fashioned values come in. They need honesty, integrity and, to use a buzzword, transparency from everyone dealing with them. And some certainty, where possible, wouldn’t go amiss.

Stephen Bell

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