The protest rally organised by NFU Scotland at the Scottish Parliament last week was a civil, restrained affair following First Minister Nicola Sturgeon's announcement that the Scottish Government would provide £200m of national funds to provide cash support while Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) claims are being processed through the new, flawed IT delivery system that has so far delayed payments by up to three months in many cases.
The First Minister's intervention means that every farmer and crofter will have received a substantial part-payment of their much-needed Basic Payment, Greening Payment, Less Favoured Areas Support Scheme (LFASS) and beef coupled payments by the end of April.
Delays in paying out subsidies had stretched many businesses financially, but by-passing the flawed IT system will now allow cash-strapped farmers to receive those badly-needed, massive cash injections.
One wonders why the NFU Scotland didn't call off the rally. I agree with Angus McCall, executive director of the Scottish Tenant Farmers Association (SFTA) when he said that if NFUS are not careful, they will lose the sympathy of MSPs and the public. Mr McCall went on: "Calls for Richard Lochhead to resign are counter-productive and will only be seen as political posturing as we head towards the election. The SNP government have been very supportive of agriculture in general and tenant farmers in particular. They will in all probability be back in power after May and we need to remember that we will need their continuing support in the future."
Many members of the public reckon that farmers are always whingeing or crying wolf. They seem to be constantly moaning about low prices, bad weather, poor crops or whatever - but although they love complaining, few Scottish farmers will protest publicly. That sets them apart from other European farmers who readily take to the streets in their thousands to make their point.
Rallies, marches and blockades are regular occurrences on the Continent. Those protests can be violent. Fires are often lit, effigies or produce burnt, missiles thrown and lorries vandalised.
I remember about 40 years ago when Scottish farmers were moved to stage a big protest at Glasgow's Merkland Docks. Over 1,000 beef farmers from every part of Scotland turned up to blockade cheap Irish beef imports. Those imports were undermining the market leading to heavy farm losses and several bankruptcies.
Protesting farmers were fired-up and determined to stop those lorry loads of Irish beef leaving the port. Some were even prepared to endanger their lives by lying in front of the lorries.
Our Union president at that time was the canny Aberdonian Silvester Campbell. He realised the demonstration could get out of hand and delivered a powerful speech that convinced the farmers to be vocal but peaceful. Thanks to him nobody broke the law and the demonstration was conducted with dignity, and I believe his legacy lives on.
I attended similar peaceful, mass protests in December 1997 alongside 1,000 other farmers at the ports of Stranraer and Cairnryan - again about cheap, Irish beef imports.
As a farming journalist I have been at several protest rallies over the years by dairy farmers, often blockading supermarket distribution centres. I have witnessed many publicity stunts ranging from giving cartons of milk away, to bathing in milk, or parading cows outside supermarkets.
I remember a national farmers strike back in 2005 when some stopped selling their produce for a few days - but nobody noticed or cared. Daftest of all were the dairy farmers who foolishly spread their milk on the land rather than sell it.
I can understand the frustration of those who went on strike, but sadly, over the years, strikes and demonstrations have proved to be more-or-less a waste of time.
The problem with farmers is that they are price-takers rather than price-makers.
Thousands of them individually bargain with big buyers and processors and find they have to accept their terms. Others, go to markets and basically stand in the auction ring with their cattle or sheep asking: "Please sirs, what will you bid me for my animals?"
Farming co-operatives have had a chequered history in Scotland, but until farmers learn to work together and market from a position of strength, they will remain at the mercy of the marketplace and dependent on public support.
I believe that while most sectors of farming are struggling with low prices, NFU Scotland's rally last week should have been called off.
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