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Address by the President of the Republic at the European Congress on Agriculture on September 18, 2002, in Tallinn18.09.2002
Distinguished President Ben Gill,
Honourable Ministers,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to Estonia - as for its population one of the smallest among the European countries! In this country, just only a little over 30 000 people are holding the farmer's old and honourable profession. And still, their proportion in the working population comes quite close to the relevant indicator in developed European countries: it is around 5 %. The small number of farmers in Estonia can be explained by the simple fact that our people altogether amount to less than 1,4 million.
As lately as one century ago, the Estonians, like many other peoples in Europe, also were peasants in their majority. Already for centuries the Estonians have been tilling the soil, although the natural conditions here, on the shores of the Baltic Sea, are not too kind. And when the author of our national epos "Kalevipoeg", Kreutzwald, in his enlightenment-minded news stories published the century before last compared Estonia with overseas countries, he had to admit that a chilly and grey weather was prevailing here, as if autumn lasted all the year round. And these day too, there is a funny story told by people how a man from southern countries having landed in Estonia informed his folks of an unending winter here - one part of it white and the other one green.
And still, the vegetation period often, due to our short and unpredictable summer, not long enough is only one concern of our farmers. The next one is the soil, which seems to bear more stones than fruits, like impressively said by another popular writer. In spite of these conditions, our ancestors over at least thousand years have succeeded in growing rye as bread grain.
Well, let's get back to the present day and this hall here. The fact that the European farmers have chosen just Estonia to be the venue of their representative forum is to us a great honour. But it also is a duty. Our duty and chance are to learn, but likewise - to pass our experience on to others. And the today's congress, too, is demonstrating that our farmers are equal partners of their European counterparts and Estonia not only is a part of Europe but also of the European Union hopefully to be enlarged soon.
Beyond the fickle weather, our farmers, just like all other entrepreneurs in Estonia, have had to adapt to very unstable political and economic conditions. At the beginning of the Soviet time, the farmers had to endure expropriation of all arable land - more than 2 million hectares. Thereafter, times came in which it was country-widely prescribed when to plough and what to sow. In the end, we left those times behind, but the farmer's hardship did not end. Within a very brief period he had to totally re-orientate himself again, for both the economic system and the market changed completely in only a couple of years.
All of a sudden, finding themselves exposed to a real competition and free market, only the strongest from the agricultural enterprises, which had started after the restoration of Estonia's independence, were able to carry on their former activities. Those who have managed to survive the competition have had to work harder not only with their hands but also with head. And although only less than 1,2 million hectares of arable land is still used, half as much as before the war, it is compensated for by growth of productivity.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Over the last years all countries of the world have become increasingly interrelated, thus making the world itself to appear smaller. Ever more goods are moved over longer and longer distances, however, many countries wish the borders to be even more open. This issue is presently being negotiated in the World Trade Organisation. Obviously, due to the pending new trade agreement, all countries of the world including the European Union will have to open their markets to new competitors and new products more than so far. On the one hand, it will again complicate the producer's life, but, on the other hand, it will enhance his options to choose his markets. The Estonian farmer has left this stage already behind.
The future offers more prospects to those producers who invest in modern technologies and knowledge. They already today are aware that consumers are expressing ever more clearly their expectations and the environment, in turn, sets its limits.
As for the consumer's expectations, the second-most important place next to quality belongs to food safety. It is only natural that, along with it, the demand for organic products and clean environment will grow. Not by far is all of this strange and disagreeable to the farmer. Just this very principle - clean food and cultivated environment - matches the farmer's way of life, no matter what the scale of his production.
In Estonia, large and small farms have been operating side by side for decades. One good example of large-scale production having proven its effectiveness is dairy farming where two thirds of cattle are concentrated in the hands of only two per cent of the farms. The concentration of production, in turn, has helped to improve the competitiveness of farms both within the country and abroad. At the same time, we attach importance to preserving the small farms and the way of life coupled with them.
In Estonia, there are many different types of beautiful landscapes rich in species, like meadows with scattered trees, coastal and hilly grasslands, the maintenance of which perfectly can be combined with extensive grazing of cattle and sheep. While doing this, in addition to maintaining the landscapes, we also would get meat and milk produced with organic methods. All of this would be feasible already today if the state would give its helping hand.
It seems to me that it's just here where a way starts enabling to meet the changing demands and quality-awareness of consumers and, beyond that, to make great strides with one's enterprise.
The modern way of life has torn quite a number of people away from nature. Yet, on the other hand, that's the very reason why they more and more frequently tend to spend their leisure in the countryside and want to take their children and friends there in the future. Attaching importance to health, people's wish to re-establish their ties with nature, to live in a more natural way and to wear clothes made of natural materials - all that should offer entrepreneurial rural people lots of new chances to earn money.
Of course, in today's world it is not possible to strictly follow Rousseau's appeal "Back to nature!" however, the increasingly ominous implications of the boom in production and consumption may force us to correct drastically our attitudes and activities.
From the above, also new duties for governments can be derived: to word exactly the expectations and to create such regulations and systems of motivation, which enabled producers to meet new challenges.
In the European Union, there is a strong legislative basis for the system of payments in place, the next reform of which is presently being prepared. This undertaking is watched by the farmers of the future member states as closely as by the farmers of the present member states. It is inevitable that this may prompt a kind of alienation - in the case that someone should feel deprived of something, or someone should disagree with getting less than his neighbour.
As everybody knows, the future members will accede in line with present policies and they can count only on the skills of their negotiators enabling to take into consideration all essential arguments and, as a result of it, to make the best possible decisions for all. Indeed, it is hard to believe that those presently sitting at a common table would try to take each other for a ride.
There is one more thing we definitely can do - we can jointly stand up for society to continuously hold rural life and agriculture in honour. I am sure that apart from following the spirit of times also supporting each other will help us to reach this goal.
Looking at the European Union from outside it seems to be extremely homogeneous and solid, even uniform. But - can an alliance where both reindeers and donkeys, both cranberries and olives are reared be called uniform! And when new states will join, this variety of nature and also of experience only will grow. That's where the wealth and strength of the union are hiding - in the possibility to complement each other. This aspect should make colleagues from different countries to stick together.
Our farmers belong to the same kind of enthusiasts and patriots of rural life like their counterparts in the EU countries. Despite the circumstance that the government of our young state sometimes - partly as a side-effect of our economy in transition, partly due to our growing pains - has failed to treat our producers with the care they deserve. I am sure, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them - and you too! - backbone of rural life. And that, hopefully, will reinforce their sense of togetherness so badly needed by the citizens of new member states in the European Union.
I wish you staying power and luck.
Thank you!
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