Pit Schlechter FECTU and the context for work with horses in Europe

Pit Schlechter

FECTU and the context for work with horses in Europe

FECTU the European Draught Horse Federation

founded in 2003

18 member associations in 10 European countries

Main aims:• promote cooperation between member organisations• advocate use of animals as a sustainable energy source• render draught animals more effective• guarantee their welfare

FECTU – difficulties and problems

• Some 23 different languages spoken in Europe• Geographic dispersal of members• Limited financial resources• Numerous different uses of draught horses• Differing opinions and interests

e.g. professionals vs. hobbyists• Partly unusable horses• Huge difference between Northern/ Western and

Central/Eastern/Southern Europe

Attitude towards physical efforts - Humans

• Negative: hard physical efforts to earn money with productive work

• Positive: spend money for spoiling energy in unproductive fitness training

Attitude towards physical efforts - Horses

• Negative: work with horses is backward and cruel

• Positive: use sport/leasure horses is respected

The scenery of “animals in the good old days”

• Enforces the image of backwardness in nostalgic countryside events

The scenery of “animals in the good old days”

• Is used by agro-industry to hide

the high-tech industrial food production

Animals as models for machines

• Animals replaced by machinestractors, trucks, …

• Machines intended to be as good as animals

• Animals used instead of machines:mules, honeybees, dolphins, sea lions, …

A Future for Working Horses: Two Tendencies

1. Using working horses in niches

• Profitability has a subsidiary role• Support of local decision-makers• Fits with existing economic & social setting • Improves quality of life• Engages excluded groups• Fits with trend towards “sustainability”• Example:

return of working horses in urban areas

A Future for Working Horses: Two Tendencies

2. extensive return of draught horses in agriculture, forestry etc.

• Long time vision• Fundamental changes of the political, economic

and social context e.g. from agro-industry to “peasantry”

• Animal energy seen as a solution for:– Environment issues

e.g. low input farming, soil compaction, biodiversity, carbon footprint

– Fossil energy shortage– Poverty and food sovereignty

Problems

• No real bottom-up movement for animal traction• Machinery: a vicious circle

– Insufficient demand hinders development and mass production with lower prices

– lack of varied and affordable machinery hinders retention/conversion to horse power

• Image problem:– advantages of modern use of animal energy: unknown, ignored, denied– disadvantages of industrialised farming: unknown, ignored, denied

e.g. extreme dependency on: machinery manufacturers, parts suppliers, prices for fuel, chemical fertilisers, seeds and pesticides, massive state subsidies, market regulations …)

Prospects

A new context for the promotion of animal energy in the current discussions about:

renewable energy, climate change, agricultural policy, the empire of agro-industry, food security etc.

Strong international networking is needed

Pit Schlechter

FECTU and the context for work with horses in Europe