Recently retired Vice-Principal of SAC reportedly talks more havers about farming

Dr James Irvine

FRSE, DSc, FInstBiol, FRCPEd, FRCPath(Lon)

Teviot Scientific, Cultybraggan Farm, Comrie, Perthshire

Filed 22 Sep 04
©www.land-care.org.uk

Yesterday the farming pages of the Dundee Courier carried an article by its respected farming editor Andrew Arbuckle entitled:

Scots farmers advised to "find an edge" (1)

The article was marking the occasion of Professor David Atkinson's retiral last week from his position as vice-principal of the Scottish Agricultural College (SAC).

He, the professor, was quoted as saying that his prediction for Scottish agriculture was bright, although the industry would be very different in the future. He believed that Scottish farmers had always to "find an edge" that would give them better returns from consumers. To make his point he compared the supply and range of food available with the most popular form of footwear nowadays, trainers.

He is quoted as saying:

"There are trainers at £15 and there are trainers at £50 with very little difference other than the label"

"Scottish farmers have to find the extra marketing that puts them into the more expensive category"

So that's it then, is it? Just hype up the brand and the money will flow.

Even for a plant scientist from Northumbria that is pretty naive, if not frankly facile. Perhaps he forgot - or was he not aware - that the attempts by Scotland the Brand to do just that failed miserably (2) even with the backing of Scottish Enterprise (3).

Yet he expects Scottish farmers to do it on their own against a background of oppression from layers of government at Holyrood, at Westminster and at Brussels - all contriving to ruin their industry in favour of an over zealous, unrealistic political ideology with its banners of "conservation", "biodiversity", "organic" and "down with production".

While I am no great expert on the trainer type of footwear, I rather doubt if Professor Atkinson is either. But I do know something about wellies. The cost of wellies ranging between a few pounds up to over a hundred pounds is not so much based on brand name, but on the quality of the product. By and large, you actually get what you pay for. The best is very expensive, but it is very good. It is the same for rigger boots and for tractors - and much else.

The Scots successful reputation in business has been based on inventiveness, integrity and honesty (4). Substituting these for sales talk will not only fail, it will do much wider damage to the image of Scotland within the international business community.

What is required is the political environment that will allow Scottish farmers to develop products of genuine quality, rather than the current policy that puts so many obstacles in the way.

Australia and New Zealand have prospered without farming subsidies partly because their respective governments have not been obstructive. For example, they supported - and continue to support - their farming academic and research base. In the UK that is being decimated, compelling the universities and research institutes to follow political whim - thereby slashing the funding for agriculture research (5).

These antipodean countries also took advantage of markets opening in Asia. The UK's nearest neighbour and competitor, France, is set to continue to support food production, while we decry it. Apparently the French do not think there is much wrong with their countryside.

Organic bubble

Andrew Arbuckle's article goes on to describe how David Atkinson has been a long-time supporter of organic cropping and stocking. Perhaps the professor has been too close to the marketing techniques of the Soil Association - superb market branding based on a creed that has little science to substantiate it (6). When the subsidy money dries up there is a rush for the exit (7).

In his call to Scottish farmers to do better marketing is Professor Atkinson advocating that we follow false gods to try and earn a living? That is scarcely the role of such a body as the Scottish Agricultural College, which in earlier days was admired for the quality and impartiality of its advice.

Park Keeping

The ex-vice-principal of the SAC also appears to have little concern that the expertise of Scottish farming is to be downgraded to park keeper. He rightly states that the ability to look after the land is very important. However, he does Scottish farmers a major injustice by suggesting that that they have not being doing just that for generations.

The reason why Scotland's countryside is in such good shape is because Scottish farmers have combined agricultural production with the care of the land. Rather than play cheap marketing tricks in the attempt to get more funds for the SAC by being seen to support misguided government policy, he should have the honesty to acknowledge the fact.

More havers

But the most recent ex-vice-principal of the SAC is no stranger to havers.

The press release from the SAC regarding its joint conference with the Soil Association last year - with the pretentious title "Agriculture: the primary health service?" (8) - included the following statement:

"In his closing comments, SAC's Vice Principal, Professor David Atkinson, pointed out that the National Health Service is focussed on the treatment of disease but has moved away from the wider issues which affect health such as the importance of quality food in our diet. As a result we do not have a health service, we have an absence of disease service. And we cannot get health out of a pill bottle."
SAC press release

Havers - because the NHS is very much interested in the prevention of disease and does a great deal to encourage people to eat in a healthy way.

In the context of Professor Atkinson's remarks - a Soil Association/SAC conference - the inference that food produced organically is healthier than food produced by conventional farming methods is also havers. Many years of trying to establish such a claim have proved no such thing.

Hopefully in the future we can get something a bit more substantial coming out of the SAC other than advice about the merits of marketing gimmicks.

References

1. Arbuckle, Andrew (2004). Scots farmers advised to "find an edge".
Dundee Courier, 21 Sep 2003.
http://www.thecourier.co.uk/output/2004/09/21/newsstory6353999t0.asp

2. Fields, Julia (2004). Scotland the Brand votes to wind up.
Sunday Herald, 30 May 2004.
http://sundayherald.com/print42253

3. Business leader (2004). "Joined-up" thinking failed Scotland on a brand scale.
Sunday Herald, 30 May 2004
http://sundayherald.com/print42271

4. Beach, Andrew (2003). A profile of Professor Derek Reid. Tourism's maverick is getting back to basics. Business in person. Scotsman, 11th April 2003
Reproduced with permission
See TOURISM Homepage, filed 14 Apr 03, www.land-care.org.uk Click Here to View

5. SEERAD (2004). Strategy for agricultural, biological and related research 2005-2010. `July 2004.
http://www.scotland. gov.uk

6. Irvine, James (2004). Researcher struggles to show any benefit from "organic" farming to human health.
See FOOD Homepage, filed 18 Jan 04, www.land-care.org.uk Click Here to View

7. Editorial (2003). The organic bubble.
See SOCIAL/ECONOMIC/POLITICAL Homepage, filed 27 Aug 03, www.land-care.org.uk Click Here to View

8. Irvine, James (2003). High in hype but poor in credibility. Agriculture: the primary health service? The Soil Association and SAC conference, Paisley 28th May 2003.
See FOOD Homepage, filed 02 June 03, www.land-care.org.uk Click Here to View

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