Recommendations

In the previous sections we discussed the concept of entrepreneurial skills, the factors influencing the development of farmers’ entrepreneurial skills, and the context in which the issue of entrepreneurship is embedded. In the following section, recommendations are formulated with regard to how these findings can be applied in order to foster the development of entrepreneurial skills among farmers.

Influencing factors have been described in relation to the various levels at which they exist (national, regional, farmers, and so on) and the different forms they take (direct / indirect). In addition, different actor groups are involved, which were addressed by the recommendations. For an overview, these relations are pictured in Figure 7:

Motivation of farmers (cultural/social influences)

As we have argued, farmers’ acceptance or the expectation directed at them to become more entrepreneurial and engage actively in the development of their own entrepreneurial skills is influenced by the cultural and social context. A second point which has not been mentioned so far but was addressed by workshop participants in the synthesis stage is about how to reach farmers, especially those who are not yet aware of the importance of entrepreneurial skills or of the possibilities of changing their own situation.

Different discourses about entrepreneurship

The issue of the different discourses around entrepreneurship was only rarely mentioned explicitly as a separate point to be addressed in the workshops of the synthesis stage, and then only in terms of emphasising the importance of cross-cultural linkages to enhance farmers’ views. Thus, the recommendations formulated in this section are elaborated purely on the basis of the project team’s point of view.

 An awareness of the existence of different discourses is important; it could be interesting to conduct research into which discourses are dominant in which social groups (farmers, policy makers, extension, and so on) and how the dynamic of different discourses impacts on the entrepreneurial behaviour of farmers.

In their article, Burton et al. (2008) not only provide a possible explanation for why farmers’ attitudes have not changed but also elaborate possible solutions. The first point is to establish a common understanding about a certain issue, e.g. entrepreneurship: ‘Transmitting embodied cultural capital thus becomes a matter of developing ‘identical categories of perception and appreciation’ with other farmers, such that the embodied skills can be recognised by others and rewarded with other forms of capital’. Burton et al focus on professional and management skills. Thus, if and to what extent entrepreneurial skills are seen as ‘good farming practice’ in farmers’ eyes is not studied. Therefore, it could be argued that it is important to discover what farmers’ and other actors’ ‘categories of perception and appreciation’ are in connection with entrepreneurship. Burton et al. also state the importance of social comparison as a means of recognising and appreciating skills. This corresponds with our findings and could be an explanation for why the importance of experience and exchange of experience is emphasised.

Even if the subject is accepted as being important, little evidence is available in connection with entrepreneurship in the farming sector (see chapter 2). The article by Pyysiäinen et al. (2006) is one of the few examples of where the issue has been studied recently. Thus, further research is needed to better understand these connections and their underlying dynamic.

Recommendation No. 1: Taking different discourses into consideration within the policy context:

· Consider different points of view in policy development / preparation by including stakeholders and farmers via Democratic Deliberation as suggested e.g. by Rosenberg (2004) or in the EUSASSPO project.

Recommendations concerning further research:

· Encourage research projects which address questions of identity, cultural capital and/or farmers’ life-world and connect them with the subject of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial skills.

· Encourage research projects which study the framing of farmers’ roles from different points of view, such as the point of view of government/public bodies, the ‘expert system’ of extension, research and education, stakeholder groups, consumers/general public, farmers and farmers’ associations, etc.

How to increase farmers’ awareness about the importance of entrepreneurial skills

One question which was discussed at the EU seminar as part of the synthesis stage was how to persuade farmers to use existing opportunities to develop their skills and how to ‘make them aware’ of the importance of these skills. This question was also discussed during the national stakeholder seminars of the synthesis stage and ideas were elaborated as to how farmers can be addressed directly . Some suggestions pointed towards intensifying contacts to farmers and trying to persuade them of the importance of skill development in personal conversations, or reaching them via TV programmes about successful entrepreneurs, or conducting ‘conventional’ discussions about production issues and subtly linking them to issues connected with entrepreneurship. A further suggestion here could be to discuss the current situation, i.e. the changing environment, and how to cope with it – this is a subject that interests farmers; the view could be introduced that each farmer really can do something about the situation by developing their own entrepreneurial skills.

The role of non-farming actors who deal with farmers, such as extension, education and professional services (accountants, bank), was also emphasised, as these actors are closest to the farmers and may have the best chance of influencing them. Hence, support for the ‘education’ of such actors might be a further alternative.

A further issue addressed by the workshop participants in the synthesis stage is the question of how to motivate farmers directly to take advantage of existing offers. Again, direct contact to the people who have regular contact with farmers was mentioned. However, it seems that further research is required here about what determines farmers’ motivation to use existing education and extension offers.

As direct incentives for farmers to make use of existing education and extension offers, experts mentioned possibilities such as credit notes for education, or financial support for a sabbatical year which has to be used for education, training, work outside agriculture or visiting farmers in foreign countries. The pilot project ‘ERASMUS for young entrepreneurs’ is such an incentive. Similar programmes should be established for established entrepreneurs, such as financial support for farmers for a sabbatical year or a Leonardo programme for farmers, and suchlike.