CZECH REPUBLIC
I grew up on a farm, studied University of Agriculture in Prague, and I’m still working on our farm. We have about 120 cows and 100 sheep on 300 ha of grasslands. We also keep many different kinds of poultry. We are certified as ecological producers. Most of our production is sold to Germany and Austria (via our business partners). I was member of Young Farmers association.
I think our main challenges are access to land, access to finance and unfair competition by big farming enterprises. I fear we may be destroyed by big corporations – or not – I’m not sure just yet!
There needs to be more support for small farms, fewer administrative complications and bureaucracy, with easier access to local markets, fair prices, no GMO or imports from countries that use GMO, or from countries that are not ecologically responsible.
Cooperation through sharing knowledge, sharing business partners, cooperation in politics and lobbying for small farms will all help.