More annihilation of British Farmers rights

Our poor old British counterparts are suffering yet more draconian public whims with the news this week that a dairy farmer who happened to be grazing his cows in a field with a public access walkway through it, will face $1 million pounds in damages for injuries received by a walker after she was attacked by cattle in Cumbria in 2003.

If ever we needed proof that the general public in Britain has gone barmy, this is it, and it goes to the very heart of why farmers here fought so hard over public access issues here recently - they saw the future - and it looks costly.

According to the Farmers Weekly UK a judge at Preston Crown Court ruled the farmer was liable because he had not properly considered the risk his cattle posed.

"Ms McKaskie (the victim), who was walking her dog across one of Mr Cameron’s fields, is claiming £1m for the injuries she sustained in the attack.While Mr Cameron is appealing against the decision, legal experts warned the judge’s decision could set a legal precedent and mean farmers having to remove cattle from fields.

However the NFU said there was nothing in law to prevent farmers putting cattle and calves in fields with public access.

"It is a concern that following a recent court case in light of the accident that there is a suggestion cattle should not be grazed in fields with footpaths,” the union’s Robert Shearsby told the BBC.

"The NFU advises its members on the requirements of the law and what should be done to minimise risks."

The ruling came after a police officer was paid £10,000 in damages by a landowner after he was trampled by a herd of cattle."

This is of course what happens when the rights of the public are put ahead of the necessity of producing food. Farmers in Britain may own the land but it seems they barely have a foothold on it, and that is why we see so many immigrating to New Zealand. Who can blame them!

Isolation not always a curse

Carbon miles, the distance to overseas markets and endless quota restrictions in these protectionist times can leave the New Zealand farmer frustrated at our relative isolation to the world's markets, but in some ways it can be a blessing.
The dying British farmer is facing a David and Goliath battle with the big supermarkets to survive and so far the supermarkets are winning.
Recession and aggressive competition have forced supermarket chains like Tesco's and Sainsbury's to slash the price of fruit and vegetables to meet, they say, 'consumer demand'.
Farmers have been reporting severe bullying tactics with one close to selling up after Tesco's dropped the spud price by NZ $138 per tonne overnight. Most farmers report being paid 50% less than the previous season for their vegetables and most agree it can't continue.
And of course with Europe on their doorstep the supermarkets can take produce from elsewhere at the cost of the British farmer.
The situation is dire, and the consequences may be equally as dire for those of us competing from this side of the world. The reaction, of course, is to protect these farmers and this is where protectionism becomes a major threat once more. As consumers' back pockets dry up food prices fall and despite Gordon Brown's free trade philosophy, the pressure from another suffering sector of the economy may force the Government to help out.
The over-riding problem is the lack of loyalty from British consumers and slick campaigns by the likes of Jamie Oliver and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall to get people enthusiastic about quality grown home produce may take years before any quantifiable results occur.
The idea is right though - positioning the UK farmers away from commodity products where they can't compete against aggressive European farmers, into quality driven produce may serve them well in years to come. Either that or they die.
But teaching the consumer the value of a head of British broccoli, or the health benefits of eating a free range chicken may take some time when we live in a society that doesn't value its food, and wastes disgracefully in a way previous generations would have shuddered at.
And just because we are isolated it doesn't mean our own domestic market is immune. We also need to be educating on the quality of our food. However, unlike British supermarkets, our own are quite adept at keeping the price up.