The Danish Farmers’ Union (L&F) constructively participates in the pig four-party and supports the ambitions for better animal welfare, more Danish value creation and more jobs.
The government’s foundation sets an ambition for more value creation and more jobs in the Danish pig sector and at the same time a significant boost to animal welfare. These are ambitions that the Danish Ministry of Agriculture and Food would like to contribute to. But the pig four-party begins against a backdrop of political swordplay against the industry and breaches of assumptions behind the original green three-party. Therefore, the confidence from agriculture is somewhat measured.
The run-up to the launch has not made things any easier either. L&F only became aware of the final terms of reference and the established framework for the work about an hour and a half before the government’s press conference.
– We will of course show up if we get the opportunity to bring our expertise and our views into play. But it is a strange starting point for close cooperation that the parties only get to know what the work will specifically be about, less than two hours before the government presents it publicly. If the four parties are to succeed, it requires trust on both sides, says HC Gæmelke, chairman of the Danish Agriculture & Food Association, Pig Sector.
The government’s policy framework calls for a greater share of the value creation from Danish pig production to take place in Denmark, for the export of live piglets to be reduced, and for Danish jobs to be supported. For L&F, it is crucial that this is done by creating attractive and competitive conditions for production, slaughtering and processing in Denmark, not by limiting well-functioning parts of the industry.
– More value creation, more jobs and better animal welfare in Denmark are good ambitions. We would like to help find solutions to these. But then the policy must also be coherent. You will not get more investments, better animal welfare and more production in Denmark by simultaneously making it increasingly expensive and difficult to run pig production here, says HC Gæmelke.
The cooling counter also sets the limit
A central task for the pig foursome will be to make the ambitions in the government’s framework meet economic reality. Danish pig producers work on market terms and compete with producers in other countries. New Danish special requirements therefore have a price, which must ultimately be passed on to customers.
– You can agree on many things at Christiansborg, but you can’t agree on what the Danes will pay for a package of pork. Imported pork made up around 7 percent of the market in 2000. Our estimate is that today it is around 22 percent. This shows how quickly Danish production can be squeezed if we make it too expensive. Then we risk not better Danish pig production, but more imports and fewer Danish jobs. The Pig Four will naturally have to deal with this dilemma, says HC Gæmelke.
Trust must be rebuilt
According to L&F, a number of new political decisions have skewed the balance in the green tripartite. Most recently, the government has announced an immediate halt to new and larger conventional pig farms, an intervention for which several legal experts have raised serious doubts about the legality.
The stoppage will remain in place at least until next summer, when the decisions of the four parties are followed up politically, whereby farmers cannot expand or build new animal welfare barns, even though the investments are, among other things, to create a framework for future production. This stands in stark contrast to the government’s original starting point of six months of work in the pig four parties and significantly prolongs the uncertainty for farmers, banks and related companies.
It has left its mark.
– Of course we will show up. It is better to sit at the table than to be on the menu, and Danish pig production is too important for us to leave its future to others. But the traces from the green tripartite are frankly frightening. We entered into a historic compromise in trust in a certain balance, and we have since experienced that this has changed significantly. Therefore, trust must be rebuilt. An agreement must be an agreement even when the meeting is over and the cameras are turned off, says HC Gæmelke.
A clear red line
L&F is ready to discuss all aspects of future pig production. But there is also a clear limit to what the organization can contribute to.
– We are entering the pig four-party to develop Danish pig production. If the requirements end up being so expensive and extensive that ordinary pig production can no longer be sustained in Denmark, then our red line has been crossed. You can call it restructuring or transformation, but if the barns close and production moves out, then it is liquidation. We will not put a name to that, says HC Gæmelke.
Agriculture is already in the midst of a historic transformation with extensive land conversion and new climate and environmental requirements. Therefore, according to L&F, the pig four-party must end with a long-term direction that gives companies the opportunity to continue to invest, develop and create jobs in Denmark.
– We are ready to take responsibility and make compromises. But agriculture also needs politicians to show that they want an industry that can invest and develop. If the ambition in the government’s foundation is better animal welfare, more Danish value creation, more jobs and strong food production, then let’s use the pig four-party to find solutions that actually make it attractive to create that value here, says HC Gæmelke.
