Anatomy of a crisis in Charolais cattle farming

Foreword by Hubert Cochet (Professor of Comparative Agriculture at AgroParisTech)

Introduction

Behind an iconic breed and landscapes, a production system in crisis

Making this serious crisis an object of study: modus operandi

Reading the crisis of the Charolais agricultural system

Part 1. The origins of the crisis, from the 1950s to the present day

Chapter 1. From mixed farming to the "calf-producing" system

An agricultural revolution in the making, from the late 18th century to the mid-19th century

Decline in the share of mixed farming and early specialization towards beef cattle breeding between the 1850s and 1950s

Relatively diversified production systems where the majority of cattle are left with lean meat (1950-1960)

From the castrated calf to the weaned calf (1960-1980)

Betting everything on the weaned calf (1980-2000)

Weaned calves prepared Italian-style (from 2000 to the present)

Conclusion

Chapter 2. From cut to trim, the beef industry is industrializing

From cut to minced steak: towards mass consumption

Meat becomes a "Fordist" product

Intermediaries forced to consolidate

Conclusion

Chapter 3. Seventy years of the race for calving

An initial increase in the number of cows per worker (1950-1960)

A significant shortening of the production process (1960-1980)

Continued increase in the number of breeding cows and increased weight of some products (1980-2000)

Overcoming the limiting peak workload of calving (from 2000 to the present)

Seventy years of increasing the number of cows per worker: an illustration from the Autunois and Bazois regions

Conclusion

Chapter 4. An increase in volumes at the expense of added value

A very favorable price ratio that encourages increased production (1950-1972)

The beginnings of a crisis marked by the erosion of added value (1972-1992)

Net added value per worker becomes negative (1992 to the present)

Conclusion

Conclusion of Part 1

Part 2. A Deep Crisis

Chapter 5. When work no longer pays

Four types of farms that have maximized the number of calvings per unit of labor

Significant economic difficulties

Conclusion

Chapter 6. Humans and nature, victims of the race to calving

Beef cattle farming: both responsible for and victim of environmental damage

A silent, but very real, social crisis

Conclusion

Chapter 7. The twilight?

Agricultural and market policies that are gradually moving away from supporting the race to calve

A recent and substantial decapitalization

A race to calve that is encountering technical, organizational, and economic limitations

Conclusion

Conclusion of Part 2

Part 3. What paths to escape the crisis?

Chapter 8. Breaking free from the "Calf Mold"

Fattening all or part of the cattle born on the farm

Starting a second animal or plant production

Obtaining better value from lean cattle sold

Mixed results

Conclusion

Chapter 9. Uniting to act

Responding to local demand

Focusing on a niche market

Promoting suckler cow farming as a heritage asset

Conclusion

Chapter 10. Expanding possibilities

Reconnecting with the core principles of agroecology

Reaffirming the role of collective action within human-scale supply chains and networks

Creating the political conditions for a paradigm shift

Conclusion

General Conclusion

Despite rising beef prices, Charolais cattle farming is experiencing a structural economic crisis

The crisis in Charolais cattle farming is not solely economic, it is multifactorial

Solutions to the crisis face numerous socio-technical obstacles

What future for Charolais cattle farming?

Afterword by Dominique Fayard (PhD in History, Associate Researcher at the Rural Studies Laboratory, Lumière University Lyon 2)

Bibliography

List of Abbreviations

Acknowledgments