Status, developments and perspectives of part-time farming - results of an empirical study in the federal state of Baden-Wurttemberg in 2012

In a study carried out at the Institute of Farm Management at the University of Hohenheim, a written survey was conducted among active part-time farmers on the "Status, developments and perspectives of part-time farming". The area under investigation was limited to the German federal state of Baden-Wurttemberg, in which part-time farming has consistently accounted for a high percentage of more than 60 per cent of total farming for years. The standardised written survey referred to 610 active part-time farmers 204 of whom took part in the survey (response rate: 33.4 %). The data were analysed using univariate methods such as frequency distributions, averages, median, ranges and standard deviations, as well as bivariate ones. The results of this study suggest that the farm managers - just like their full-time colleagues - are interested in optimising their farms and in getting them in line with a sustainable future. They give thought to how they will be able to manage their farms successfully and profitably in the long term. The majority of them see their opportunity in changing the operational structure of their farms, in various ways at that, but mainly by expanding their acreage. This process of development has generated part-time farms managing more than 100 hectares, which thus exceed the average size of commercial farms. Contrary to the general assumption that part-time farmers do not have the knowledge and expertise necessary to successfully produce quality products, this study demonstrated that part-time farmers are well-trained and in fact operate rationally. They have found a way to bring their farming business into line with their non-agricultural job and to be equally successful in both areas. They should therefore be given the right to the same treatment in terms of funding and consultation as well as the opportunity to participate in the market despite the agricultural markets being partially glutted. Many of the farm managers surveyed in this study expressed the wish that this should become common knowledge and that the public should hold the services provided by part-time farmers in higher esteem. In summary it can be stated that part-time farming will continue to be of great importance in Baden-Wurttemberg. In spite of the fact that this often underestimated form of farm management is paid little attention by politicians, science and the public, it is very sustainable. Key results obtained in this study can be transferred to other regions.