The Sustainable Development of Local Agri-Food SMEs and the Improvement of the Welsh Farming Environment

Abstract

Welsh farmers, their surrounding communities and the downstream agri-food producers are suffering their worst fall in incomes since the 1930s and their future prospects appear discouraging. Environmental changes have forced a major re-evaluation of agri-food assistance measures devised by policy makers, local and regional government, and the National Assembly of Wales, to be implemented through their agencies. This paper reports on possible innovative and sustainable solutions to current Welsh agri-food problems, which will be economically, environmentally and socially complementary. The paper will consider mechanisms to provide solutions to the sustainable development of local agri-food small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) including community and education projects (through valley-wide agri-food regeneration strategies), technology transfer education policy linking colleges to agri-food SMEs, and support to help agri-food SMEs develop Websites. Such solutions may also involve the promotion of good practice among farmers and agri-food producers, diversification in terms of processing alternative farm produce, and the use of the Internet to market Welsh speciality foods. The paper concludes by arguing for the adoption of appropriate benchmarking standards applicable to those areas requiring assistance to provide economic, environmental and socially relevant solutions.