Analysis Aggraction 2019
Is the fragmentation bad for advocacy?
The now historic farmer's protest of Tuesday 1 October has put the farmer back on the map in Dutch society. The self-confidence of the farmers has also received a significant boost. While the advocacy for them is increasingly fragmented.
The protest on October 1 was organized by Agractie and the Farmers Defense Force. Agractie arose from the call of sheep farmer Bart Kemp to action, which ultimately resulted in Malieveld dominated entirely by tractors and farmers. The seeds for the Farmers Defense Force were sown after the occupation by animal activists of the pig farm in Boxtel. Both Agractie and Farmers Defense Force have stated that they will continue to stand up for the Dutch farmer independently of each other.
Traditional counterpart
In recent years, the AgriFacts Foundation (STAF), Team Agro NL and, in fact, the Mesdag Zuivelfonds and Boer Bewust have also been added, which want to strengthen the position of the farmer and horticulturist especially towards the citizen. These organizations felt compelled to do so because, in their view, LTO did not give sufficient priority to this.
In addition to the large LTO Nederland, each sector has traditionally had its own counterpart. Think, for example, of the NMV, the DDB (dairy), the NAV (arable farming) and the NVP (poultry). Pig farming stands out with the POV, in which the LTO and the NVV have united. The contraction in the sector and the fact that the NVV and LTO Varkenshouderij were evenly matched in terms of supporters, was partly to blame for this.
Good communication
Fragmented advocacy is not necessarily bad for a sector as long as the various organizations communicate well with each other. However, that is often not the case now. Many organisations, such as Agractie, were founded out of frustration about the lack of effectiveness of LTO Nederland. LTO is often accused of always aiming for deals with the Ministry of Agriculture - and thus new obligations for the farmer - and therefore never really standing up for the Dutch farmer.
Apart from the cooperation within the POV, the LTO is also unable to work in good coordination with other interest groups for farmers. For the market leader - so to speak - it often proves difficult to collaborate with 'competitors' and it is found difficult to share control or success. For example, LTO rejected structural cooperation with Boer Bewust and Team Agro NL. Or LTO North late perform nitrogen research, while the Mesdag Fund already has a lot of information about this.
Raw on the roof
The fact that the Agractie 2019 on the Malieveld was such an immense success for the agricultural sector must have been a stunner for LTO. Thanks to two enthusiastic organizations - who unerringly felt the farmers' frustration - and especially the power of social media to group the farmers, more than 10.000 farmers and 2.000 tractors have been brought together. Without input from LTO.
It even took a while before the organization also reluctantly sided with the actions, challenged by farmers who expected a statement from LTO. The fact that LTO could piggyback on the Proud of the Farmer campaign initiated by Agrifirm was a good thing for the organization at almost the same time. The interesting question now is whether the large-scale protest is also an eye-opener for LTO itself.
Premium Negotiation Partner
Because LTO is the premium negotiating partner for agriculture minister Carola Schouten, the organization has over the years also become part of the system that is now being crushed by the farmers on the Malieveld. To put it very simply: the minister has a plan, LTO is entering into negotiations to remove the sharp edges.
LTO is also often accused of negotiating on the basis of information provided by the ministry or other public organisations. This prompted a group of farmers to set up STAF as a fact-checker for the agricultural sector. This foundation has already made the newspaper columns several times with corrections to publications about the agricultural sector from various angles.
It is undeniable that many directors and employees of LTO work hard and often work overtime to defend the farmers' interests. However, because the LTO organization is large and layered, too much is looked inwardly and the antenna to the outside is not used enough. The other farming collectives that have now emerged are seen as competitors that can steal members. While LTO can use them well to put the pressure on the kettle in negotiations.
Better position farmer
Although LTO itself had little to do with the actions on the Malieveld, it can now use them in negotiations with Carola Schouten for a better position for the Dutch farmer. On the other hand, the Minister of Agriculture now envisions an even more fragmented representation of interests. Can LTO still speak on behalf of a majority of Dutch farmers, is a question it can ask itself? The number of members of LTO and its structure has been arranged feed for discussion.
The number of Dutch farms is shrinking at a steady pace and could shrink even faster due to buy-out schemes in pig farming and possibly due to nitrogen measures in the future. There seems to be no room in this landscape for interest groups that actually all strive for the same thing, but want to implement this in a different way. However you look at it, the ball is ultimately in LTO Nederland's court to prevent fragmentation. A culture change seems inevitable.
Eric the Thrush
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