Jon Watt: Agriculture’s role in economy is hugely undervalued

I was fortunate enough to rent a new piece of land last autumn.

But before PX Farms breaks out in a cold sweat at a new barley baron setting up in competition, it’s an extra 15 acres.

It’s a corner field surrounded on three sides by a main road and busy junction.

See also: Alasdair Boden – it’s sad to see the dairy sector shrink

About the author

Jon Watt

Jon Watt runs a mixed arable and beef farm, with a suckler herd of pedigree Hereford cattle and a contracting business, with his dad in Suffolk. He is a former NFU Student and Young Farmer Ambassador.

Read more articles by Jon Watt

As I ploughed it and watched the traffic go by, it made me think of an article I’d been told about in The Economist suggesting how irrelevant agriculture was to the UK economy.

It only made up a percent or so of GDP. It wasn’t needed.

Only an economist schooled in the price of everything and the value of nothing could look at food that way.

I wonder if he sat down at Christmas to a hearty meal of share certificates.

I simply didn’t believe that GDP number.

As I watched the traffic, I saw vets and agronomists in their trucks. Do they get counted?

What about the dealership and staff selling and servicing the pickups?

Nearly every lorry was agricultural. Grain heading out towards the docks or mills and loads of fertiliser heading in towards the farm. Lorries loaded with chickens or pigs went past.

When Scania sells a lorry, what is this counted as? When the haulage firm hires another driver because of this work, that’s the farming industry, too. 

Somebody far more clever than me could work this out, I’m sure.

But it seems we are being massively undervalued, and our contribution to the wider economy is far larger than is credited.

When somebody in Whitehall sees the industry as small, they only see a number on a spreadsheet, something irrelevant and to be dismissed.

We know this is not true and, with all the challenges agriculture faces, making sure our industry is valued and represented is vital.

Whether it’s talking on the radio, meeting your local MPs or even spreading the word if you visit cities.

This all makes agriculture more visible and helps the public see how many people are involved, even if it’s not evident at first sight.