France | The Ag Coop that Shares More than Machinery

What if, instead of going into debt to invest in their farms, farmers came together to pool equipment? What if, instead of struggling to run a small farm alone, there was extra help at hand? What if new entrants could draw on the experience of more established farmers in their local area? It may sound too good to be true, but this is the reality with France’s network of Agricultural Machinery Cooperatives (CUMA). With more than 10,000 local branches all over France, the CUMA is a space for farmers of all stripes to come together in a neighbourly spirit of mutual aid and solidarity. Pauline Petit reports from Plume Chat Huant, a local CUMA cooperative in north-west France. “It’s a community of farmers who share equipment. We have to work together to organise ourselves,” says Hervé Mérand, manager of the Plume Chat Huant cooperative. But this local branch of the national CUMA network also plays a role in reducing polarisation, as Hervé explains: “It’s one of the last spaces where we can still discuss together, [...] The post France | The Ag Coop that Shares More than Machinery appeared first on Agricultural and Rural Convention.