Farming and Slavery Concepts - Coursework Example

Farming and Slavery Farming is a profession that is adopted world wide. And a larger proportion of the world is working asfarmers. On an international scale, farming varies around. The farmers produce different crops and wine seeds and a lot of other different products. But some common issues exist all over the world. Farmers are trying to overcome these issues by collectively using some techniques that would help them in the future. The following types of farmers exist in the farming industry and are trying their best to increase their lands and earn profits. Capitalists These farmers own large amounts of land and act as the caretaker of that land. They hire farmers to work on those farms and pay them monthly wages. Capitalist farmers are usually concerned about their profits rather than the quality or worker satisfaction. A large number of these farmers exist in the rural areas of under developing or developing countries where people inherit such large lands from their ancestors and thus the chain goes on. Land owners Land owners are the type of farmers that usually own large areas of land and hire workers to work on their lands. These owners do not act as care takers rather they hire a manager who keeps a check on all the activities going on. Like all other managers, the duty of this farm manager is to gain maximum profits by minimizing the costs incurred. The land owners thus pay the manager a certain share of the profit and keep the rest with them. Tenants Tenant farmers are just like general tenant workers who work on others lands and share a certain percentage of profit with the land owner. These farmers know exactly how to run a farm business. They act like entrepreneurs, giving new ideas to increase the product quality. This increase in quality in return leads to better and increased profits. They use new farming techniques such as pesticides, fertilizers and tube wells in order to make their business profitable. Family farmers Family farmers are small land owners that cultivate some daily use vegetables and fruits and use them for household purposes. These farmers do not sell off their products in the market. They adopt this profession just as an interest. Problems in the farming business There exists no such business in this world which is problem free. Issues and conflicts do arise when two or more than two people work together to achieve a common goal. The most important role of management is to minimize these issues using effective tools and procedures. Difficulty of task Farming is not an easy task to be done. It requires a lot of hard work and tireless efforts. The common complaint these working farmers make is that they are not paid according to the efforts they put in. This complaint is valid to an extent because these farmers work day and night in order to achieve their targets. And once achieved they do not get according to their expectations. This is something that de-motivates the farmers and they feel left out. Field ownership The trend toward field ownership is increasing nowadays and it is becoming an everlasting issue. It is most popular in Asian countries such as Pakistan, Bangladesh etc. whereas there are a number of countries that have made laws and regulations about the ownership of lands. The Farms Land Ownership Act was established in Manitoba, Canada to protect the rights of the Canadian citizens. This act limits the foreign nationals to acquire land in Manitoba; the restriction limit is almost 40 acres. By putting such restrictions, the Act is trying to protect the rights of the Canadian nationals so that they can acquire these lands and help in the development of agriculture. The land in Manitoba is being used for agricultural purposes and the government wants Canadian citizens to invest in the land which will also help in the development of agricultural communities (Manitoba Farm Board). Uncertain yield and prices Inflation is one of the major problems in this world. Certainly it also has an effect of the prices of the commodities sold by these farmers. The price fluctuations are so constant and regular that it is difficult for the farmers to predict a base price. This influences the yields obtained by these farmers. The farmers then sell their products at the prices set by the market and suddenly after a price fluctuation occurs, the profits are disturbed. Lesser profits It is widely observed in the business industry that farming and agriculture industry is not as much profitable as other industries such as manufacturing and services sector. These farms are mostly located far away from the local market and take a lot of transportation cost. The farmers do not earn profit enough to cover the transportation cost and live in luxury whereas on the other hand the people having office jobs are earning much more as compared to these farmers and are much exposed to a better life style and environment. These problems not only exist in the developing or under developing countries but also in the developed countries. This is the reason why people do not want to work in this sector. The young generation is focusing more on white collar jobs rather than joining the agriculture sector which can prove to be equally profitable if gone through proper development. All these intricacies are making the new generation apprehensive about joining this industry and working for it. Types of Farming Farming is a diverse business. Different people prefer different types according to their societies, cultures and the technology available to them. The four major types of farming include: Collective farming As the word suggests, it includes the properties of several farmers and acts as a joint enterprise organization. Different farmers from the same localities make this joint venture in order to maximize their profits in the most cost effective way possible. The members of such a farming organization participate equally in all the concerned farming activities. An example of a collective farm is the one which dominated the Soviet agriculture during 1930 and 1932. This farm was based on joint possession of resources. Further these farms also collectively share the profits and distribute income accordingly. Factory Farming Factory farming is a type of organization in which a farm functions as a factory. It is a common practice carried out in the agricultural sector and businesses. These organizations keep and raise livestock and process it further for human consumption. The end products mostly include milk, meat and eggs. This industry is growing faster and is earning profits accordingly. But there are certain demerits as well. Proper care is taken of the livestock by using new techniques. Intensive farming The name describes itself. Intensive farming includes high inputs of capital, investment and labor. This type of organization heavily uses new technologies depending upon the land area. These new technologies include pesticides and different chemical fertilizers. Organic farming This type of agriculture majorly focuses on maintaining the productivity of the soil. It also includes controlling pests biologically and crop rotation. These organizations exclude food additives and plant growth regulators. It also restricts high usage of synthetic fertilizers and livestock antibiotics. Such organizations are gaining much popularity because of the green effect they are imposing on the society. There are a number of factors that must be kept in mind when taking about farm yield and farm productivity. Some of the factors include: Historical background of society A number of different types of societies exist which have diverse farming conditions. Different countries adopt different types of farming in order to improve their agricultural systems. For example, in developing and under developed countries collective farming is more common where a number of farm owners join together in order to run the farming business. Population rate Due to the increasing population rate, the field surface provided to inhabitants or active workers is decreasing. As the number of unemployed people is increasing, more of them consider farming an easy job and try to get in to this business. These workers are provided with field space in which they are allowed to work or live. Levels of development Levels of development also relates to population size. It means that the number of inhabitants in household is significantly increasing and since the active worker remains the same it becomes difficult for the single earner to manage his household. Scientific research Research, nowadays, is a necessity for any industry or country to survive in the long run. New technologies in farming are all the major results of extensive research in this field. The countries doing this research have better and developed systems whereas the other countries are following them. Research helps farmers increase their productivity and income. Education In developed and developing countries the education level and literacy rate is much higher as compared to the under developed countries. Education plays an important role in all aspects of life. Even in farming, farmers are taught how to properly harvest and cultivate specific types of crops. They are given information about new technologies and chemicals coming up in this field that would help them increase productivity. Information Information distribution also plays an important role in measuring productivity. All the research done on agriculture must be transferred immediately to the farmers so that they can make use of it. This, again, is more popular in developed countries and countries that have a developed agricultural system. Slavery in Farming Who are Farm Slaves? A slave is a person who is in the possession of another person. And he is enforced to do all the work he is responsible for. Similarly there exist ‘slave farms’ that are responsible for all the tasks done on a farm from plough to spraying to harvesting. The modern term used to describe them is ‘farm workers’ or sometimes ‘farmers’. Most of these workers work on a permanent basis whereas some of them are contractual workers. In the crop season, sometimes small farm owners lease these workers from other farms to help them with the harvesting. Most of them work from dawn to dusk. Some of the farm owners split up the families and sent parents and children separately to work at different places but then allowed them to each other once in a while. The workers of small farms mostly slept in small cabins close to the farmer’s house whereas workers at larger farms were given a separate building with small rooms or quarters to live and sleep. Most of these slaves were not allowed to attend schools and read and write. However they were sometime allowed to keep chickens and gardens to grow tobacco or other small vegetables and sell it off in the market to earn money. Well known names Andrew Jackson, the President of the United States from 1829 to 1837, was a rich agricultural man. The main source of his wealth was his extensive number of slaves that he had kept in his mansion and his farms. He used to hire workers at a very young age and gave them proper food and a living. There were three categories of slaves; one were the slaves that were responsible for the house chores, the second ones were responsible for the farm work and the third ones were people most probably African Americans who possessed special skills. These three categories were provided with different quarters to live in. The quarters of the first category were in the backyard whereas the second category had quarters far from the house but near the fields. The third category lived in the Hermitage i.e. Andrews’ mansion. The slaves were provided well with food and houses and other basic necessities to live. They were even allowed to keep material possessions. Their quarters were larger and better than the average slave lodgings. No doubt Jackson cared a lot about is servants as revealed by all the facts. He even provided the reproducing women with extra facilities and leniencies. But besides all these facilitations, slavery was a crucial and atrocious system. In case of severe offenses he allowed the heads to thrash the slaves responsible for the wrong doing (National Trust for Historic Reservation). As already mentioned, the wages given to the farmers are not even close to what they work for. Many farmers complain that they are treated as slaves. They are forced to work more and get paid less in return. Also a number of farmers protest that the rates given to them have not changed in a very long time. Even in developed countries such as United States; the farming conditions and the labor conditions are on its last legs. The concept of contract labors is increasing day by day and agriculture industry is strongly relying on it. This reliance has resulted in severe effects on the worker conditions. In such cases, the farm owners are not bound by the lawful procedures anymore due to which they offer low wages to the farmers or workers. Further the work conditions have become poor to an extent that at least one farmer dies on the job every day and a lot of them are seriously wounded (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). In Florida, a group of immigrant farmers are fighting for reasonable pays and advanced work conditions and environment. This group is running a union by the name of ‘Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ and is struggling hard for their rights and opportunities. One of the farmers says that the immigrants have started to get used to it and they are trying their best make it work because no one else is willing to do this job. Since it is hard for immigrants to search for jobs, so they are managing their lives in what they are being paid (Perez, 2013). These immigrants travel in from Mexico and more than half of these migrant workers in the United States are working without papers, which means illegally. This union has also fought against the U.S government because these defenseless people have also been deprived of providing medical and legal assistance. This work force is gradually decreasing since Mexico started to establish and develop their agriculture business and is providing opportunities to the lower class that can’t have an office job and are forced to work on the farms. All these people want is better working conditions and provision of basic resources. The Bureau says that the only the government has the authority to compel these reforming agencies to enforce the law and keep a constant check on the work conditions being provided to farm workers and other low class workers. Another prevalent issue that exists in Africa is that of child labor and slavery in chocolate farms. Young boys ranging from 12 to 16 are sold in to slavery and are forced to work in cocoa fields from which chocolate is made. These kids are enforced to work under poor and atrocious work conditions and there main work is to harvest the beans. The field owners consider severe abuse as a necessary option when dealing with these young workers. These kids are forced to work even by their families in order to earn something in return. The major population in Africa is very poor and is required to perform such activities in order to make a living. This issue has been addressed a number of times and no proper solution is derived from discussions. Since the chocolate export is one of the major sources of income for the country one has to think before taking any severe steps. Even the chocolate industries have retaliated against them and are forcing the government and other agencies to take actions in order to develop the working conditions for these young workers. It has become very difficult to reach to an optimal solution because the problem is very complex and includes a number of dimensions which have to be taken care of (Chanthavong, 2002). This issue has become so popular because of the fact that people who are using the chocolates for happiness they are noticing that under what conditions this chocolate is made and who has to suffer to get through it. As the world has become a global village, every country is somehow connected to the other, so the idea that one part of the world exists in misery while the other enjoys all the benefits available is not very appealing to the end consumers. There have been a number of awareness programs that illustrate the poor working conditions and the idea of child slavery to these end consumers, which has resulted in protests from the consumer’s side and also from the chocolate industry because it is them who are being affected ultimately. They are demanding strict action to get rid of this problem of child slavery and also to improve the working conditions for such farm workers. To sum it all up slavery is, no doubt, a brutal system. It must be completely eradicated from the society. The concept of farm slavery must be reconsidered. The farm workers should be provided with wages at least equal to the effort they are putting in. They should be endowed with the basic necessities of life. In this changing world, it is not possible for an average farm worker to earn a proper living for his family. He should be given facilities such as children’s education so that his children can work better for the agriculture industry. As we all know that farming is not such a business that makes a person wealthy but proper adaption of new techniques can result in increased yield and productivity. So the farmers must adopt the new methods and technologies in order to make their business successful and profitable. Works Cited Chanthavong, S. (2002). Chocolate and Slavery: Child Labor in Cote dIvoire. Retrieved April 13, 2013, from TED Case Studies : http://www1.american.edu/ted/chocolate-slave.htm Manitoba Farm Board. (n.d.). Residents. Retrieved April 13, 2013, from Manitoba: http://residents.gov.mb.ca/reference.html?d=details&program_id=373 National Trust for Historic Reservation. (n.d.). Slavery. Retrieved April 13, 2013, from The Hermitage: http://www.thehermitage.com/mansion-grounds/farm/slavery Perez, L. (2013, January 2). Farm Worker Conditions Likened to Modern Slavery . U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (n.d.). Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved April 13, 2013, from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: http://www.bls.gov/data/#injuries Read More