Collective land arrangements that decommodify land for agroecological transformations

Abstract

Rights and access to land are major pressing issues among mainly first-generation agroecological farmers in the Netherlands. Due to short-term tenure contracts and high land prices, these farmers face an insecure future. Because of this, they are often unable to make long-term ecological investments, such as planting trees and taking measures to improve soil health. A growing group of farmers are devising new, more communal forms of land ownership and tenancy, that counter market forces and existing policies. In this article, we shed light on these farmers’ discourse and how it informs the construction of new forms of land ownership and tenancy. In the related research project written and led by farmers, information has been gathered in the form of meeting minutes, interviews covering problems and perspectives related to the land tenure regulation, and commons. This information has been systematized and validated by farmers. Agroecological farmers find themselves in an uncomfortable situation that is challenging in 2 ways. On the one hand, they are calling for revision of land tenure regulations to ensure long-term land contracts for their existence and on the other hand they are seeking to replace property rights in favor of more collective possession-based arrangements. Our analysis shows how a discourse of decommodification seems to underlie the strategies and practices implemented by farmers. It focuses on place-based developments to secure the autonomy of farmers and communities. We argue that, to safeguard the possession and use of land for agroecological farming in the future, both developments of land decommodification (long-term tenancy and commons) should be supported. This can be done by integrated policies on land sale and lease that align with the ecological carrying capacity and agroecological production capacity of land, and that ensure compensation for monetary downgrading of agricultural land.