Oliver Moore: Farmers form new workers’ alliance Talamh
As part of a busy, vibrant Feeding Ourselves conference in Cloughjordan ecovillage last week, which focused on community food, soil, diversification and regenerative farming, a new Irish farmers’ organisation was introduced to participants.
This organisation — the Irish version of the UK’s Landworker’s Alliance — is tentatively called Talamh. Five farmers announced their vision for it.
These were: John Brennan, of Leitrim Organic Farmer’s Coop; Clive Bright, of Rare Ruminare and the Organic Trust; Fergal MacAindir, of Root and Leaf farm, as well as of La Via Campesina and CSA Ireland; Fergus Smith, of Moy Hill Farm and CSA Ireland; Thomas O Connor, of Manna Organics and IOFGA, and organic dairy farmer, Liam Chambers.
Of the 40 plus attendees at this part of the weekend, 35 were either farmers or landworkers.
Opening the gathering, Fergal MacAlinder said: “We need a new voice for Irish farmers. We need a new platform for a discussion on farming that reflects the work we do on our farms.
"We only hear of industrial farming systems, which exploit the land rather than nurture and protect it. We want to be a big organisation that pushes small ideas”. The need for such an organisation emerged from discussions. This included:
The ability to speak freely, without restrictions. Currently, organic certification bodies, and all organisational bodies, have limits on what they can say, or what messages they can represent. Both capacity and remit are currently limited for organisations.
More learning and sharing opportunities: UK Landworkers Alliance hosts open days, such as farm hack days, where farmers learn how to repurpose tools and machinery for their size and scale. Indeed, openly available plans are sometimes downloaded and worked on collectively — resulting in a new modular machine built by the end of a shared working day. And this machine is then collectively owned and shared among farmers — like a modern-day meitheal. They also share open, pollinated seeds and other items. The Irish organisation would also engage with current learning providers, including NOTS (National Organic Training Skillnet) and OGI (Organic Growers of Ireland).
Connecting up with communities and consumers: direct access to local markets and bringing people onto the farm to volunteer.
Access to land — being able to farm without owning or inheriting land. There are thousands of people who have done farming and growing courses in various places, who have volunteered and have the ability to produce food. And yet, much farm land is passed on through family lines only. Some organisations, such as the Cork Food Policy Council, have helped free up some disused public land for community gardens, but, in general, there are more willing workers than plots for them to work on. And this organisation is not just for farmers — it’s also for workers on the land.
Input into policy discussion. On the one hand, they do not “want to be a ranting and raving organisation”; on their other, they feel small ecological producers’ voices are not being represented. Dairy farmer, Liam Chambers, said that the number of dairy farmers had dropped (from 80,000 in 1984 to 17,000 today); the herd size had increased (from 18 in 1984 to 65 today), and the real price of milk is lower than in 1870. Who represents under-threat farmers? For three years’ time, a wish list for the organisation would include the following:
Establish an annual gathering/showcase of best practices and research.
To be a household name for ecological, small-scale, quality, nutrient-dense, healthy food from awesome farmers.
Have a web-based platform.
Membership growth.
Increase in small farms that are making a living.
Clarity for Northern Ireland farmers, common polices for the island of Ireland.
Some 13 people stepped up to the steering committee for (what is still tentatively called) Talamh. Expect to hear more from it.
