'Ministry endangers sector organization'

I always thought the ministry was at the service of its sector. However, this thought turns out to be a false dream. The Ministry of Economic Affairs is endangering the survival of the Brancheorganisation (BO) Arable Farming. It does not want to participate in a good and simple way of collective financing of the 'Research and Innovation' programme.

BO Akkerbouw is the platform in which arable farmers and important chain parties are represented. The pillar of the trade association is the multi-year plan to be jointly implemented for research and innovation in arable farming. This is about the future of the sector. A sector that you, as a young farmer, would like to enter.

Ministry cooperation required
However, this pillar is in danger of becoming brittle. Collective financing requires a simple form of cooperation from the ministry. Arable farmers must be able to put a tick in the combined statement, so that they give permission to share their acreage data with BO Akkerbouw. Unfortunately, the ministry is blocking this possibility. Each grower would contribute to the payment of potatoes, grain and beets on the basis of his specified acreage. This is the fairest way to collect collectively.

If the sector parties have to organize the financing completely themselves, "free riders" will arise. Unfortunately there are enough of those already. This means we don't even get started. That will mean the end of BO Akkerbouw. The ministry has succeeded in killing a sector organisation. Oh yes, the ministry would like to see what it can do afterwards if it turns out that there are too many free riders in this single-handed way. Why can't this be done in advance?

Support is wafer thin
To date, the multi-year plan has not yet been implemented. The support among arable farmers is now paper thin. The frustration about this reaches boiling point among those directly involved. The rigid stance of the ministry is a disgrace and affects the entire agricultural sector. BO Akkerbouw is the first sector organization to receive permission to collect funding for research from all arable farmers. That is a path that other sectors are following with suspicion and would be happy to take. They think twice about this prospect.

We must continue to put pressure on the ministry to show that we are worth it. Waiting for the new Minister of Agriculture. Until then, we as a sector will have to seriously consider whether we should still invest money in research that we are already co-financing with the ministry. That will put a damper on the reputation of the ministry, which is so proud of its top sectors.

Doeko van 't Westeinde

Doeko van 't Westeinde is an arable farmer in Northeast Groningen. He is a former director of the daily management of the NAJK. There he was portfolio holder for arable farming.

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