Cutting corners means following a path that seems shorter, cheaper, and maybe less stressful. Farmers especially small-scale farmers are usually the culprits in this case. With that being said we might want to know why these farmers do what they do.
In the last 5 years or so the price of farm inputs has increased tremendously with many small-scale farmers left with just two choices: INNOVATE or FADE OUT.
Some in their quest to innovate cut corners by doing some or all of the following:
Use of unhygienic production methods in their quest to beat down the cost of production
Disregard of withdrawal period when using medications on livestock.
Skipping one or two steps in the production process to save cost
Excessive use of antibiotics as growth booster in livestock
Use of harmful preservatives and storage techniques
Use of chemical growth boosters not approved for use on livestock
Disregard of withdrawal period when applying fungicides and others on crops.
The list is actually endless, but we will stop here for now, I can tell you that some health challenges we see today have their root cause from these harmful practices.
It is necessary for you as a farmer to make a profit but we need to understand that the health of our customers should be our priority. Today we see the clamor for ORGANIC FARMING, the question now is this, if inorganic farming had no issued would there be a need for organic farming?
We must innovate, we must reduce production costs, and we must make a profit, but the final consumers of our products should not be the ones to pay for it.
Reduce cost by avoiding wastage, think non-conventional production techniques, have well-researched and targeted market analysis.
