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In the 21st century, Lithuanian agricultural problems are different from those of the last century. Previously, the main purpose of agriculture was to grow or produce products so that they are sufficient for the people of our country. Today, cereals are produced in Lithuania 2.5 times, cattle are raised 3 times, milk 1.5 times more than what is needed to meet the needs of the country 's population. We do not just care about fruits, vegetables and pork, but the reasons are quite objective. So, now that the export of Lithuanian cereals is twice as much in demand in Lithuania and we are exporting raw materials, but not the final product, the goal of obtaining even more cereal yields should be one of the main objectives of the country's agricultural policy? Our country is mature and we are getting closer to the western standard of living faster or slower. Therefore, it is increasingly necessary to badess whether the pursuit of higher output is sustainable and does not harm the ecosystem and the social social environment. growth does not mean that there will be no casualties in this process. In Lithuania, agricultural activity is still a lot of people in comparison with other countries of the European Union (EU). The number of crops in our country will inevitably decrease because this process is global. It is strange that it is conceivable that the decline in the number of people engaged in agriculture does not affect the migration indicators. Yes, it is bad that the emigration abroad is overshadowed by the internal migration of the village to Lithuania. It's already ours, t. y society, the problem. But the rapid emigration of the last fifteen years of the village abroad is not new: in 1913, emigrated from Lithuania to the United States 24 thousand. Lithuanian Most of them were rural people. According to Gediminas Kulikauskas in his book "Lithuanian Code", then a common Lithuanian emigrates from the family of a farmer rather than studying a new job and going to work in the city. The book states that one hundred years ago, Lithuanian farmers were poorly cooperated because of mistrust of each other. The trend has not changed much over the centuries
The Lithuanian government has many levers to determine the direction in which agriculture is to develop in the country – in 2017, the national support, with EU agricultural payments, amounted to 1 billion. The total value of agricultural products produced and produced in the country was 2.6 billion euros. euro How could these funds be distributed more efficiently? First, stop trying to give a little to everyone. Farmers' financial data show that traditional farms with a managed area of more than 20 hectares can be profitable in Lithuania. Therefore, more attention should be given to strengthening farms from 20 to 100 hectares. However, it is not possible to release the pipelines and create conditions for the concentration of large agricultural groups – the necessary balance must be maintained. But what to do 100 thousand farmers who work up to 10 hectares of land? According to the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Jeanne Tirol, the state must support the worker and not his place of work. If small farmers do not survive the current practice of conventional agricultural activity on an area of several hectares, the authorities should not encourage them to engage in such activities. Instead, measures are proposed to enable people to find employment and their incomes are higher, less variable and direct public support is lower.
Second, the government must strive to help farmers to regroup. One of the measures likely to reduce the fluctuation of farmers' incomes is the risk management funds, which will probably be created soon in Lithuania. However, the mistrust of the farmers with regard to the other also trumps the problem: there is no agreement between nobody and nothing to pay, and one fears that someone is attracting something again. The government should vigorously include all farmers in this insurance scheme by contributing their share, but by demanding that the farmers themselves also pay contributions to such a fund. State aid to farmers due to adverse weather conditions must remain, but beneficiaries need to be evaluated more closely (for example, what is the net worth of their badets, since support can now be extended to rich farmers which can cover accumulated losses). should be more in line with the social protection function. It should be recalled that traditional grain cultivation, when exports exceed twice the consumption, is a commercial activity and commercial losses should not be absorbed.
Third, Lithuanian farmers mainly grow cereals because they are simply simpler. a good deal back. Milk production overflows, it takes a lot of work, although the added value of the country's milk production is higher, since the milk processing industry in Lithuania is better developed and larger than its activities grain processing. True, milk processors themselves do not tend to invest in milk production, although they themselves complain about insufficient milk production in Lithuania. Thus, the government responsible for allocating national and European funds should focus on promoting milk rather than on grain production. More attention should be paid to horticulture, market gardening and livestock raising to diversify farmers' incomes.
The economic and social structure of Lithuania, if we want higher human incomes, will have to continue to change. the number will continue to decline, so migration will inevitably take place (to a lesser extent), but the purpose of our society is to be internal, not external. The state can not leave the will of the people left behind by agriculture, but whenever it is necessary to badess whether people themselves are using too much help from # 39; State. A considerable number of regional unemployed is rather high, but it is becoming increasingly difficult to find agricultural companies and farmers who want to work. Finally, in the 21st century, we should only talk about sustainable agriculture. It is precisely for her that the government should focus on the allocation of funds.
Tadas Povilaskas is Chief Analyst of SEB Bank
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