Farmers Backbone Nation Supported Ensure a Constant

Farmers backbone nation supported ensure a constant high-quality food supply citizens. Dairy farms, examples, assistance government form subsidies order remain competitive continue supply needed dairy products.

Farmers in today's context

Agriculture is the oldest occupation on Earth and the first and still most important means of supporting life. Agriculture was initially manifested through hunting and gathering of wild fruit and vegetable, to gradually evolve into an organized action of land cultivation with the use of developed tools and techniques.

Up until the Industrial Revolution, the cultivation of land was the most common human activity and the primary source of food sufficiency. Nevertheless, as machines and equipments were developed, as the steam engine was created and as more and more factories were opened, the people migrated from the rural sites to the urban locations, in search of better lives. Agriculture as such was seconded by work in factories, which came to occupy the entire time and energy of the new urban population. While the rates of urbanization have decreased, the global tendency is that of a sustained migration from the rural to the urban sites.

Another global trend is that of a decrease in the interest in agricultural activities. Within the less developed and emergent countries, agriculture remains an important sector, but the general trend within the more developed economies is that of a decreasing emphasis on agriculture in favor of an increasing emphasis on services. In a numeric presentation, the figures are alarming:

Out of the total $74.43 trillion of global outpour, only 5.8 per cent is generated by agriculture, with 30.8 per cent being generated by industry and a staggering 63.4 per cent being generated by services

At the level of the labor force, once dominated by agriculture, only 37.3 per cent of all individuals are employed in agriculture, whereas 21.7 per cent work in industry and the remaining 41 per cent are employed in the services sector (Central Intelligence Agency).

The decreased emphasis on agriculture is coupled with yet another problem -- that of the environmental problems facing the world today. The most important of them is represented by global warming and pollution, which reduce the quality to the soil as well as that of the waters, increase the temperature, create landslides and damage the crops. In a context of decreasing interest for agriculture, combined with the environmental threats facing the world, the need to support agriculture becomes more and more dramatic.

The problems which face the agricultural field have to be addressed in a quick and efficient manner and the rationale for this necessity is given by the fact that the agricultural products remain the sole source to feeding the population. And the importance of agriculture is even more so important when the global population is increasing and the current sources of food seem insufficient.

In this context then, it becomes obvious why the farmers represent the backbone of the nation and why they need to be supported in their efforts to ensure a constant and high-quality supply of food for the citizens. Governments and societies across the globe have intensified their efforts in supporting their domestic farmers, but the situation has often materialized in accusations of unfriendly competition. In order to best understand the situation, it is first necessary to look at David Ricardo's theory of the comparative advantage.

The economist argued that each country is characterized by its specific advantage, such as a particular geographic positioning, an abundance of specific resources, cost efficiencies and so on. He then argued that in this context, one country finds it easy to produce a certain commodity, while it is difficult for it to produce another commodity. According to Ricardo, the countries should produce those products for which they possess a comparative advantage and they should exchange them within the international market for products they can only produce in more difficult conditions (Maneschi, 1998).

As the forces of globalization have intensified throughout the past recent decades, the export of agricultural products from efficient regions has intensified. This specifically meant that the agricultural sectors in the countries in which agriculture is not a comparative advantage have suffered additional damages. In this context, the federal institutions in the countries importing agricultural products have intensified their efforts in supporting the domestic agriculture efforts.

The most relevant example of federal support for agriculture has been constituted by the combination of tax incentives and barriers to imports. In essence, the local governments have financially supported the local farmers with tax incentives as well as other subsidies and these were aimed at increasing the national agricultural production and also at making the domestic products more competitive in both national as well as international markets. Also, some states have imposed high taxes upon imports from other countries as a means of discouraging the population to purchase the significantly more expensive foreign items.

Complaints were then registered by those selling foreign products within the respective countries and several dumping accusations were issued. Each situation was dealt with in terms of the specifics, but at a global level, the World Trade Organization stimulates countries to lift the barriers to trade and to stimulate fair and friendly competition based on production efficiencies and the market principles of demand and supply, rather than tax incentives, subsides and barriers.

The situation within the agricultural field and the management of the agricultural context is a highly complex one, and the complexities -- as they have been presented above -- generate the impeding need for an active -- yet sustainable and responsible -- support of the national farmers. And this support is required by all farmers, especially diary farms, but also other categories of farms.

Some recommendations as to how the agricultural fields could be helped in a sustainable manner refer to the following:

1. The offering of tax incentives and financial subsidies to national farmers. These subsidies should nevertheless be established in full accordance with the stipulations of the WTO as well as the other international trade regulatory institutions.