However, a reduction in the number of farms did not mean a reduction in agricultural output per head; the exodus of one farmer allowed another to increase the size of his farm. By the 1960s, the size of the average farm was more than triple compared to in 1882 (Ardagh, 1977, p. 123). This increase was helped by changes in land ownership laws. In 1945, a statute of rural leases (Wright, 1964, p. 110) was created, which standardised the rental period to nine years, placed the power to renew in the hands of the tenant, gave buying priority to current tenants and encouraged cash tenantry over share tenantry, which was viewed as being an unwelcome leftover from feudal times. This allowed for parcelised land to begin to be changed into larger, adjacent areas of land.
In the same era, Pierre Tanguy, the then Minister of Agriculure, attempted to reform many other aspects of rural policy, not always with success (Wright, 1964, pp. 110-112). Perhaps the most successful was the formation of Coopératives pour l'Utilisation Des machines Agricoles (CUMAs) which were invented to 'encourage the collective purchase of farm machinery by groups of small peasants'. This had a long-lasting positive effect on the prosperity of rural France. Other proposed policies, such as the establishment of a National Land Office or the voluntary merging of small farms so that they could operate jointly, were met with great amounts of protest, and had to be abandoned.
The government in the years immediately proceeding the war can be criticised for failing to make a clean break from pre-war rural policies; whilst at first their reforms seemed to have succeeded, they somewhat fell through in 1948 when food shortages ended and prices dropped (Moulin,1991, pp. 158-162); the illusion of easy profit was shattered. At once, farm sales increased, and the prospect of greater land ownership was very attractive indeed.
By the 1950s, peasants became very aware of the need for modernisation (Moulin, 1991, p. 165- 167). Central in this cause was the Jeunesse Agricole Catholique (JAC), who believed that technological advancement and reorganisation were key to the advancement of rural areas. They interested themselves in educating their members, not only in agricultural techniques but also in economy, sociology and politics. Other forces played an equally large part in modernisation of rural areas from the 50s onwards (Moulin, 1991, p. 167-168). Industry helped to promote new farming techniques, such as fertilisers and animal feeds, whilst cooperatives enabled the purchase of higher quality goods. Shopkeepers and merchants who chose to install themselves in villages provided much-needed services to the locality. Another source of modernisation was the propagation of urban culture into the countryside; newspapers, radio and eventually television. Furthermore, counterurbanisation had begun to take hold; villages received an influx of new housing, which further increased the availability of services. Moulin argues that “urban penetration ... largely submerged all aspects of rural life, which found itself bereft of any system of values with which to oppose it”.
Another type of modernisation, though not in the form of urban penetration, is the significant changes in government rural policy since the 1960s. The JAC applied much pressure upon the French government, culminating in protests in the late 1950s (Winchester, 1993, p. 80). This resulted in the French government passing the Loi d'Orientation in 1960 (Winchester, 1993, pp. 91-92), which acknowledged that price support and protection did not encourage modernisation. It was seen largely as a 'statement of principle' , but it was a foundation for future change. In 1962 the Loi Complémentaire was passed, which put organisations and funds into place to enable reforms to take place, in three major areas: the labour force, farm size and structure, and farming practices.
Arguably one of the most powerful changes put into place was the introduction in 1963 of a retirement premium for elderly farmers, the Indemnité Viagère de Départ (Winchester, 1993, p. 92), where the receiver of the pension released their land to other farmers. By the mid 1980s, more than 650, 000 farmers had taken advantage of the scheme, and almost 12 million hectares of land had been freed (Naylor, 1985, cited in Winchester 1993, p. 92). The effect of this policy was thus twofold; as well as freeing up land to increase land ownership by modern farmers (who were able to cultivate larger areas due to mechanisation), the average age of the farming population was decreased. Another labour force policy was the creation of an establishment grant known as the Dotation aux Jeunes Agriculteurs (DJA) in 1973 (Winchester, 1993, p. 94). This enabled the creation of new, modern farms, and was particularly effective when an elderly family member took and IVD and passed it to the receiver of a DJA. By the early 90s, 80, 000 young farmers have taken up the grants. Furthermore, since 1962, grants have been given for the retraining of agricultural workers.
In terms of farm restructuring, the de-fragmentation of land and the growth of farm size were the major aspects tackled by 1960s agricultural policy. To facilitate these aims, the government established private companies known as Sociéties d'Aménagement Foncier et d'Establissement Rural (SAFERS), who bought up land in order to distribute it among farmers wishing to buy land (Moulin, 1991, pp. 174-175) Unlike with Tanguy's failed proposition of a National Land Office in 1944, they were not given priority of purchase, however from 1962 they were given the right to pre-empt sales. Their overall purpose was to give greater organisation to the buying of land. Between their creation and 1986, they acquired 24 per cent of the land market, one third of which was sold to new farmers.
In the area of farm practices, the most significant development is the creation of co-operatives, the operation of which is controlled by government policy (Winchester, 1993, pp. 98 – 99). Smaller co-operatives are called Groupements Agricole en Commun (GAECs), are often set up by as little as one farmer with one or more children. They carry many benefits; for example, they are given priority by the Crédit Agricole. Larger co-operatives are known as Societés d'Initiatives et de Coopérations Agricoles (SICAs) and serve large amounts of produces and deal in a large variety of produce. They offer small farmers the benefits of stable prices, an assured market and a share in profits, and encourage them to increase the quality of their produce.
The monumental changes that have taken place in rural France since 1945 were inevitable. During that time, the transformation of France from its peasant roots to a prosperous industrial and economic power happened at an incredible rate. Yet the importance of the French countryside cannot be dismissed; France is blessed by its climate and its agricultural output is the largest in Western Europe (Ardagh, 1977). The quality of French produce and the virtues of the vast French countryside are still world-renowned today. Furthermore, whilst the challenges of modernisation and adaptation faced by rural France and its agricultural sector have been great, drastic changes in government policy have ensured their continuing prosperity.
Bibliography
Ardagh, J. 1977. The New France. 3rd ed. London: Penguin Books.
Ardagh, J. 1988. France Today. 2nd ed. London: Penguin Books.
Hanley, D. L., Kerr, A. P. and Waites, N. H. 1979. Contemporary France. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Moulin, A. 1991. Peasantry and society in France since 1789. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Winchester, H. P. M. 1993. Contemporary France. Essex: Longman Scientific & Technical.
Wright, G. 1964. Rural Revolution in France. London: Oxford University Press.