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    THE BridgeNews FORUM: On farming, farm policy 
    and related agricultural issues. 
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  * Welsh Livestock Industry's Anger Over Minister's Appointment 
    Illustrates Declining Influence Of Farmers Everywhere 
  
  
    By David Walker, agricultural economist 
    BridgeNews 
    Norwich, England--Welsh livestock farmers, like most entrepreneurs, are  
proud of what they produce. So it was nothing short of an insult to them when  
a vegetarian was given the agriculture portfolio in the Welsh Assembly last  
year. 
  
    A year later, in a victory for the farm lobby, a meat-eater was appointed  
to the post as a replacement. But the implications of the original  
appointment are clear and long-lasting -- agriculture's influence is  
declining. 
  
    A new minister, secretary or commissioner of agriculture in any country  
is a matter of interest to farmers. At every rural pub and coffee counter,  
his or her farm background is the subject of intensive analysis, as farmers  
search for indications of geographic, commodity and philosophical leanings. 
  
    The British farm lobby is used to the appointment of agriculture  
ministers from urban backgrounds who have no hint of muddy boots. Such  
appointments are considered routine. And, as the industry knows, a successful  
sojourn down on the farm is often followed by promotion to a more senior  
Cabinet position. 
  
    But the appointment of a 20-year veteran of vegetarianism, Christine  
Gwyther, as secretary of agriculture and rural affairs in Wales in May 1999  
was newsworthy at the time and remained so until she was replaced last month.  
The theory that a farm background is not crucial for a minister of  
agriculture was tested to the limits by her appointment. 
  
    In truth, Gwyther was never given a chance. The bar-stool analysis was  
damning. Leaders of the Farmers' Union of Wales walked out of their first  
meeting with her after she refused their invitation to resign. After that,  
her performance was under close scrutiny and she lived anything but a charmed  
life. 
  
    We may assume that, in the interest of furthering her political career,  
she passed up the opportunity to make the supreme sacrifice for a vegetarian 
-- eating meat. 
  
    She faced three votes of no confidence in the Welsh Assembly, and lost  
one of them that alleged she was incompetent. But she had the confidence of  
her colleagues in the Welsh Labor Party leadership, who took the gamble that  
keeping her in office would not result in a vote of no confidence in the  
Welsh government itself. Her much-publicized comment that farming's  
contribution to the Welsh economy was ''close to zero'' probably proved to be  
too much, as two months later she was removed from office. 
  
    Gwyther's departure from the agriculture post is a hollow victory for the  
farm lobby. Her appointment in the first place is a sign that farming is no  
longer the mainstay of the rural economy. 
  
    It indicates the diminishing political influence of farmers which, in  
turn, reflects the declining percentage of the population everywhere who farm  
or are dependent on food production for a living. 
  
    In Britain, as in the United States, farm employment has been declining  
by about 10% every 10 years. The British agricultural labor force has now  
dropped below 2% of total employment. While politicians may not intentionally  
alienate anybody, it is too easy for farm interests to be plowed under in the  
interests of the 98%. 
  
    In the final analysis, the value of Gwyther's appointment to that 98% did  
not need to be very great to offset the cost to the 2%.  End 
  
    DAVID WALKER, an agricultural economist, lives on his family's farm  
outside Norwich, England. He recently served as senior economist in London  
for the Home-Grown Cereals Authority and previously was executive director of  
the Alberta Grain Commission in Canada. He also maintains a Web site at  
http://www.openi.co.uk/. His views are not necessarily those of BridgeNews, whose  
ventures include the Internet site http://www.bridge.com/. 
  
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to Sally Heinemann, editorial director, BridgeNews, 3 World Financial Center,  
200 Vesey St.,  28th Floor, New York, N.Y. 10281-1009. You may also call  
(212) 372-7510, fax (212)  372-2707 or send e-mail to opinion@bridge.com. 
  
    EDITORS: A color photo of the author is available from KRT Photo Service. 
  
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