<p>Among the British millionaires receiving the subsidy bonanza is Sir Richard Sutton who features in the Times Rich List.<br /><br /></p>.<p>At a time when austerity and spending cuts has become the global norm, the rich and powerful, along with several Fortune 500 agribusiness corporations, continue to be recipients of generous agricultural subsidies. With the developing countries objecting to the trade-distorting farm support in the industrialised countries, these subsidies have remained a contentious issue in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks. But for the wealthy in America and European Union, it is business as usual. <br /><br />Queen Elizabeth of Britain is amongst the top recipient of farm subsidies. She got over £8 million subsidy in the past decade. Of course she is not a farmer, but being the owner of the sprawling Sandringham estate in Norfolk region, she qualifies to receive massive doles under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the European Union. The Duke of Westminster, among Britain’s multi-millionaires—estimated to be worth £7 billion – has received £7 million over the past ten years. He owns over 55,000 hectares of farm estates. Among the other millionaires receiving the subsidy bonanza is Sir Richard Sutton who features in the Times Rich List, and still got £ 2 million in farm subsidies. <br /><br />Although EU farm subsidies have been significantly reduced, the funding for farmers remains intact. Compared to Euro 417 billion farm support for the current seven-year period ending 2013, the total support has been reduced to Euro 363 billion for the period 2014-2020. After the talks ended in February, French president Francois Hollande was quick to claim victory, saying: “The relative share of agriculture in the European budget will decrease, but I made sure to preserve the funding destined for our farmers.” <br />A Brussels-based NGO called FarmSubsidy.org states: “There are 1,212 farm subsidy millionaires across Europe, including 268 in Germany, 174 in France and 29 in Britain.”<br /><br /> Among some of the high-profile recipients, former British environment and fisheries minister, Richard Benyon, had received £ 2 million between 1999-2009 for his 20,000 acres estate. In 2009 alone, he received £ 200,000 from the EU. He is not the only European minister to be a beneficiary of the subsidy support. Several ministers in Denmark, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Spain and Belgium have been getting massive subsidies. <br /><br />According to FarmSubsidies.org, 80 per cent of the subsidy bonanza goes to only a quarter of the farm lands, aristocrats—including the royal families and the ministers – and big agribusiness corporations. For instance, in 2008, sugar manufacturing units were the top ten beneficiaries of the subsidies programme, getting Euro 55 million each. British sugar giant Tate & Lyle and the French sugar conglomerate Tereos have been recipient of massive subsidy doles. Nestle is believed to have received more than £1 million a year. Even Schiphol airport in Amsterdam has received $ 124,000 as subsidy. <br /><br />Skilled manpower<br /><br />Isn’t this enough of a reason to worry at the lowering of import tariffs by India under the proposed EU-India Free Trade Agreement thereby putting the livelihood of millions of its small farmers at stake? Huge subsidies lower the international prices that will enable EU to dump its agricultural commodities, including milk and dairy products, in India. Agriculture is being sacrificed to seek more visas for skilled manpower in the service sector. <br /><br />In the US, the Congress has deferred the politically-sensitive decision and decided not to pass the Farm Bill 2013 but instead extend the provisions of the earlier Farm Bill 2008 till September 2013. It was in 1930s that president Frankling D Roosevelt had introduced the farm bill, calling it “a temporary solution to deal with an emergency.” Since then, the Farm Bill has become a federal dole programme that has brazenly been subsidising the big farmers, the wealthy landowners, and the agribusiness companies. <br /><br />Interestingly, farm subsidies are also paid to land owners for not cultivating any crop. The argument being that farmers need to be supported financially for preserving biodiversity and safeguarding environment. Under the Conservation Reserve Programme, US farmers sign a 10-year contract promising not to cultivate their farms so as to help conserve the land. More than 40 million acres of farm land every year is left fallow as a result. <br /><br />But let me come back to the iniquitous distribution of farm subsidies. Between 1995 and 2005, while 10 per cent of the eligible farmers collected 73 per cent of the farm subsidy at an average of $ 91,000 per farm, the average subsidy given to 80 per cent of the deserving farming class was less than $ 3,000 per farm. The situation has worsened in the subsequent years. Between 1995 and 2010, the bottom 80 per cent average went down to just $ 587 a year whereas 62 per cent farmers did not get any subsidy. <br /><br />According to the US-based Heritage Foundation, ‘hobby farmers’ like Ted Turner had received US $ 206,948; David Rockefeller $ 553,782; and retired basketball player Scottie Pippen got $210,520 as agricultural subsidies. Florida real estate developer Maurice Wilder received US $ 1 million a year as corn subsidy. Like in India, absentee landlords too pocket agricultural subsidies in US/EU. The Environment Working Group says 7,767 residents in just five cities of Texas province received $61,748,945 in tax-payers subsidy. The entire farm subsidy programme is therefore nothing but a bag sham.</p>
<p>Among the British millionaires receiving the subsidy bonanza is Sir Richard Sutton who features in the Times Rich List.<br /><br /></p>.<p>At a time when austerity and spending cuts has become the global norm, the rich and powerful, along with several Fortune 500 agribusiness corporations, continue to be recipients of generous agricultural subsidies. With the developing countries objecting to the trade-distorting farm support in the industrialised countries, these subsidies have remained a contentious issue in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks. But for the wealthy in America and European Union, it is business as usual. <br /><br />Queen Elizabeth of Britain is amongst the top recipient of farm subsidies. She got over £8 million subsidy in the past decade. Of course she is not a farmer, but being the owner of the sprawling Sandringham estate in Norfolk region, she qualifies to receive massive doles under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the European Union. The Duke of Westminster, among Britain’s multi-millionaires—estimated to be worth £7 billion – has received £7 million over the past ten years. He owns over 55,000 hectares of farm estates. Among the other millionaires receiving the subsidy bonanza is Sir Richard Sutton who features in the Times Rich List, and still got £ 2 million in farm subsidies. <br /><br />Although EU farm subsidies have been significantly reduced, the funding for farmers remains intact. Compared to Euro 417 billion farm support for the current seven-year period ending 2013, the total support has been reduced to Euro 363 billion for the period 2014-2020. After the talks ended in February, French president Francois Hollande was quick to claim victory, saying: “The relative share of agriculture in the European budget will decrease, but I made sure to preserve the funding destined for our farmers.” <br />A Brussels-based NGO called FarmSubsidy.org states: “There are 1,212 farm subsidy millionaires across Europe, including 268 in Germany, 174 in France and 29 in Britain.”<br /><br /> Among some of the high-profile recipients, former British environment and fisheries minister, Richard Benyon, had received £ 2 million between 1999-2009 for his 20,000 acres estate. In 2009 alone, he received £ 200,000 from the EU. He is not the only European minister to be a beneficiary of the subsidy support. Several ministers in Denmark, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Spain and Belgium have been getting massive subsidies. <br /><br />According to FarmSubsidies.org, 80 per cent of the subsidy bonanza goes to only a quarter of the farm lands, aristocrats—including the royal families and the ministers – and big agribusiness corporations. For instance, in 2008, sugar manufacturing units were the top ten beneficiaries of the subsidies programme, getting Euro 55 million each. British sugar giant Tate & Lyle and the French sugar conglomerate Tereos have been recipient of massive subsidy doles. Nestle is believed to have received more than £1 million a year. Even Schiphol airport in Amsterdam has received $ 124,000 as subsidy. <br /><br />Skilled manpower<br /><br />Isn’t this enough of a reason to worry at the lowering of import tariffs by India under the proposed EU-India Free Trade Agreement thereby putting the livelihood of millions of its small farmers at stake? Huge subsidies lower the international prices that will enable EU to dump its agricultural commodities, including milk and dairy products, in India. Agriculture is being sacrificed to seek more visas for skilled manpower in the service sector. <br /><br />In the US, the Congress has deferred the politically-sensitive decision and decided not to pass the Farm Bill 2013 but instead extend the provisions of the earlier Farm Bill 2008 till September 2013. It was in 1930s that president Frankling D Roosevelt had introduced the farm bill, calling it “a temporary solution to deal with an emergency.” Since then, the Farm Bill has become a federal dole programme that has brazenly been subsidising the big farmers, the wealthy landowners, and the agribusiness companies. <br /><br />Interestingly, farm subsidies are also paid to land owners for not cultivating any crop. The argument being that farmers need to be supported financially for preserving biodiversity and safeguarding environment. Under the Conservation Reserve Programme, US farmers sign a 10-year contract promising not to cultivate their farms so as to help conserve the land. More than 40 million acres of farm land every year is left fallow as a result. <br /><br />But let me come back to the iniquitous distribution of farm subsidies. Between 1995 and 2005, while 10 per cent of the eligible farmers collected 73 per cent of the farm subsidy at an average of $ 91,000 per farm, the average subsidy given to 80 per cent of the deserving farming class was less than $ 3,000 per farm. The situation has worsened in the subsequent years. Between 1995 and 2010, the bottom 80 per cent average went down to just $ 587 a year whereas 62 per cent farmers did not get any subsidy. <br /><br />According to the US-based Heritage Foundation, ‘hobby farmers’ like Ted Turner had received US $ 206,948; David Rockefeller $ 553,782; and retired basketball player Scottie Pippen got $210,520 as agricultural subsidies. Florida real estate developer Maurice Wilder received US $ 1 million a year as corn subsidy. Like in India, absentee landlords too pocket agricultural subsidies in US/EU. The Environment Working Group says 7,767 residents in just five cities of Texas province received $61,748,945 in tax-payers subsidy. The entire farm subsidy programme is therefore nothing but a bag sham.</p>
