"Petras Šiaučiūnas, a famous farmer who manages a
230-hectare farm, says that one can only survive on a farm of this size, but
not live with dignity. He cannot hire a worker.
"A farm like mine is not financially capable, for
example, of buying a tractor with the money it earns. Banks give loans only
with very high interest rates. "No one even talks to us about the same
conditions that big companies get," the farmer adds, adding that he also
has to pay 10 percent annual interest.
The farmer openly says that he has been making a real living
from advertising, not from the farm, for some time now. He says he must enjoy
his work. Otherwise, life will be meaningless. As a result, he 15-17 hours he does
farm work during the day, even though this is really unprofitable.
The main source of livelihood is advertising projects. He
has over 72 thousand followers on Yuutube alone.
Although politicians constantly talk about support for
family and medium-sized farms, this provision disappears in documents and in
the distribution of support.
"As for the harvest, no one teaches or tells us that,
for example, instead of wheat, rye goes much better here. I seeded, sprayed and
threshed 5 tons per hectare. However, their price is lower than wheat, which I
threshed 1.5-3 tons per hectare.
I began to think why we used to grow only rye
and buckwheat, which are suitable for infertile lands.
This year I increased
their area and if next year's harvest is satisfactory, I will return to this culture",
says P. Šiaučiūnas and says that he conducted a kind of experiment with wheat -
he sprayed, but did not fertilize. Although they grew less than last year due
to the lack of moisture, less was invested. There is likely to be some profit.
Much worse happened with rapeseed, which he sowed on 6 ha
and wanted to try all the tricks recommended by the fertilizer and chemical
sellers. However, beasts got into the culture and only half a ton was harvested
per hectare. The farmer did not turn to anyone for the damage caused, because
he already has the experience of having to litigate with hunters for a long
time for compensation.
"We were lucky with the lambs this year. I sold them
abroad for a good price.
The farm cannot grow only wheat. Last year, I didn't
make anything from sheep, but rapeseed and wheat were profitable. Now it's the
other way around. If it wasn't mixed, it could have gone bankrupt," the
farmer says and predicts that farms of his size will fail because they are
unable to compete with high land rental prices and buy land and equipment.
At today's prices, the land pays for itself in only twenty
years.
Mr. Šiaučiūnas admits that he is saddened by the fact that there is no
long-term policy. Every new minister of agriculture does only what is good for him.
"I see a vision that we need to move away from a
commercial chemical farm. It is better to engage in educational projects, to
graze sheep on the mounds, so that the farm remains only a project, but not a
source of livelihood. I created the farm not just to make money, but to create
what I want," explains Mr. Šiaučiūnas.
True, not all projects work. For example, there was a plan
to build a hotel, but due to people's negligence, it was not possible to submit
the project for support."
Komentarų nėra:
Rašyti komentarą