Summary
P.P.P. Huigen en D. Strijker, Agriculture and society: a history of repelling and attracting, The Hague (The Netherlands), National Council for Agricultural Research (NRLO), 1998. NRLO Report 97/39.
[Original title: De relatie tussen landbouw en samenleving:
een proces van afstoten en aantrekken]
Traditionally, agriculture was the main carrier and designer of rural areas for social cohesion and design of buildings and landscape, and partially for income and employment. Nowadays this situation has changed. New, powerful players entered the rural arena: nature conservation organisations, water collection authorities and non-agricultural residents. Also 'urban' based organisations around issues of animal welfare, environment and consumer interests are involved with rural areas. At the same time traditional allies of agriculture, like water- and land development authorities, are withdrawing.
In terms of land-use in rural areas, agriculture
is still an important actor, but with respect to income generation
and employment, agriculture has lost its dominant position. These
changes are not from recent years, the relative and sometimes
absolute decrease started already in the sixties.
In the post war period, agriculture became disconnected
from its surroundings: agriculture entered a process of de-ruralisation.
The rural civilians/country dwellers became less involved with
agricultural production. Agricultural production became more orientated
towards production for world markets, thereby, to minimise production
costs, rationalising production and land-use. Farm jobs for rural
civilians/country dwellers disappeared, food was bought in town:
as a result the farm was less and less visited by the rural population.
Besides rural areas also became less multifunctional. In land
consolidation projects large parts were destinated for agricultural
use, and small plots for dwelling, recreation and nature.
The last years this situation is changing. The influence
of agriculture on arrangements of land-use has diminished. Rural
areas regain a somewhat multifunctional character and the size
of agricultural area is decreasing. The presence of farm-based
selling of local agricultural products, farm bed-and-breakfast
facilities, farm camping sites, and above all the fact that farm
family members have off-farm jobs, indicate that citizen life
returns to the farm.
The changing market situation for agricultural products
has led tot agricultural and structural diversification (the step
towards non-agricultural activities). The main trend is that agriculture
is trying to absorb the increasing urban pressure on the rural
areas on the own farm. For the generation of income the development
from farm to 'rural firm' is attractive. However, it is, questionable
whether this attractivity will sustain in the long run. Diversification
probably has negative consequences for the international competitive
position of Dutch agriculture, its traditional strength being
supplying on international markets, agricultural products with
a base quality at a sharp cost price in bulk.
We did conclude that, simultaneously there occurs a tendency of localisation (vernacularisation) and globalisation (de-vernacularisation). On the one hand rural areas become more and more uniform: the same type of stable and farmhouse appear everywhere. On the other hand, interest in local aspects such as dialects, regional products and regional culture increases. This however happens on a small scale, implying that in every region there is a tendency towards localisation (vernacularisation). However, on a higher level of aggregation, due to the occurence of localisation processes almost everywhere, this indicates uniformization. After all, every region has a particular dialect, historical buildings and local dishes. Combined with the uniformization in land-use, building styles and patterns of occupation, it indicates globalisation (de-vernacularisation).
Looking at the development of local/regional products,
it can be stated that, although certainly demand exists for local/regional
products, this demand seems to be primarily local and thus small.
On a higher spatial level, demand for local/regional products
based on the identification of consumers with the particular geographical
place seems limited. Consumers in the wider society do not identify
with the particular geographical place of local products. The
above-local demand for local/regional products seems to be heavily
based on exclusivity and quality rather than on identification
with the local region.
The article poses some research questions for the coming years (chapter 7).
Does the trend of globalisation (de-vernacularisation)
with respect to rural areas, as observed in the Netherlands, also
occurs on the wider European level? If so, 'Europe of the Regions'
seems a bit an 'empty' concept.