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Long Term Social Consequences of the FMD crisis

 

The Health and Social Consequences of the 2001 Foot and Mouth Epidemic in North Cumbria
 
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Long Term Social Consequences of the FMD crisis

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Within farming - Loss of control from within farming and agricultural related industries appears to be an ongoing state because of rapid changes, new restrictions and regulations. It took farmers and those who work with animals about two seasons to get used to new stock, with the attendant risk of injuries and anxieties about diseases such as TB brought into localities with new stock, . There has been therefore an undermining of ‘taken for granted’ tacit knowledges which has fuelled further uncertainty about future.

A farmer describes the continuing emotions of re-stocking:

I lost my cows, which were my friends as I’ve said before, I am replacing them. These are not my cows these are somebody else’s cows and I have to learn to love them really. (group meeting, 2002)
Turned dairy cows out into the fields. They were pleased to see grass again – had to get all family members to help – these cows do not know the way to the fields. (diary, 2002)
Those farmers who survived FMD do not realise what it is like as restocked cows do not know their way to the fields, and just follow the leader. (diary, 2003)

Some respondents believed that FMD accelerated the pace of the younger generation moving out of farming.
He [farmer] has definitely decided to sell [. . .]: This has all been very sudden but his son is no longer interested [. . .] With all the new regulations and paperwork a lot are finding it hard.
(Health and Veterinary, diary, 2002)

A vet writes about the ‘new normality’:
In some ways it is like after the FMD epidemic, before and after, everything is the same, but nothing is the same. Part of you is trying to find where you fit in the new reality, part of you wants the safety of the old ways. Slightly dislocated from your surroundings, but the physical surroundings are the same, but I suppose you have changed, and the old certainties, that were not certain but seemed it, have made way for new changeable ways that are not certain, and you know that they are not certain.
(Health and Veterinary diary, 2002)

A vet considers the impacts for farmers a year after the crisis:
Several [farmers] were saying that this year was harder to cope with than last as there was no crisis or adrenalin to keep them going. And that the toll from last year was beginning to tell on them and their nerves.
(Health and Veterinary , diary, 2002)

There’s a suggestion that small farms will be hardest hit:
FMD only seems to have made it harder for the smaller farmer, especially the ones that didn"t get FMD.
(Agricultural related, diary, 2003)

Within tourist related business  - A camping caravan and fishing business in the north of the county reported huge economic losses:
I would have said Caravan wise we lost 95% of the business; people just didn"t want to know. To the point where, had it not been for the shop [fishing] in X managing to keep going, we would have lost this anyway [the caravan site] ‘cos we took out a mortgage to buy this anyway in the first place.
(Small business, Interview, 2002)

In August 2002, this business is still struggling, the family of five has been unable to ( move home and is living in a static caravan. A diary entry also suggests that whilst there are post FMD funds for farming these are not forthcoming for tourism:
A pull out section on farming gave details of no less than four different schemes to help farmers overcome foot and mouth related loss of business, all of which involve grant funding of some description. One or two seemed as if they might be relevant [. . .] but when I contacted them, they only apply to farms. Maybe I’m missing something somewhere. I can’t seem to find anyone remotely interested in helping our type of business.
(Small business, diary, 2002)

Also same business owner feels penalised because of particular location. Already on periphery of popular tourist centres, she now feels blighted by association with FMD:
I’m having a difficult time persuading people to come here, as soon as they hear (the town) mentioned I can hear the change in tone
(Small business, Interview, 2002)

In contrast, a gift shop owner trading on the periphery of popular tourist destinations, suggests that money generated by the 2001 FMD crisis has helped to keep his business buoyant:
Our business really was most fortunate in the end not to have been affected but as remarked before, much of the money earned from working for DEFRA I think found its way back into the Cumbrian economy at Christmas and in the New Year.
(Small business, diary, 2002)

He also suggests that some farmers who had lost stock used compensation money to buy fitting ‘memorials’:
… selling for instance figurines of farm stock, many of them sort of limited edition things we then started getting people in who had lost their animals, had had compensation and were then wanting to buy something to sort of remind them of the animals they"d lost, you see. [. . .] So we would have like a Texel Tup and Texel lamb and people would be buying these to remind them of stock they"d lost. Sometimes it might be somebody who"d had perhaps several hundred [or] a young person who"d had perhaps one tup and half a dozen ewes.
(Small business, interview, 2002)

Within family and social domains - In 2002, a respondent attributes being overweight, frustrated and angry to ongoing FMD related stress, fuelled by a work situation where he feels that his everyday practices are being tied up in post FMD livestock movement restrictions and bio-security regimes that do not make sense. Throughout 2002 and well into 2003, he suggests that a difficult work environment has negative impacts on his home life.
When is it my turn to have some fun, some joy, a little praise perhaps. I am dog tired, sick-fed up.
(Agriculture related, diary, 2003)

There may be permanent changes which might never be attributed to FMD when decisions are made, but this respondent reflects on a potential loss:
All my churches struggle at the best of times and are heavily reliant on visitors and fund raising. Last year had a devastating effect on all of that and money has become incredibly tight. In fact I am not sure how long my parishes can go on as they are
(Community, diary 2002

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