5.3 Respondent family characteristics
Family structures: the farm families fitted more to a traditional pattern of a ‘nuclear family’ than would probably be found amongst families in the city.. All couples were married, some were second marriages. We interviewed members of two or three generations in a number of families; only one couple had one of their parents living with them. All couples had offspring, ranging in age from preschoolers to 40 plus year olds.
Patterns of employment: these did not always match that of the traditional farm family. Some, including those with young children, are both working off farm; all said they are working longer and longer hours.
Residence: all the families had been in the area longer than three years, some for all or most of the lifetime of one of them. Most adults had been brought up on farms, many within the Rangitikei or the lower North Island. Two men had been raised in the city and then opted for farming for the lifestyle, one because he had stayed on farms during school holidays, the other after being a successful tradesman.
Qualifications: many of the women had trained as teachers or nurses. Their educational profile fitted that described in a number of research projects, [ Rivers et al 1997] that is, of rural women having more qualifications than their husbands.
Farm ownership: most were owners, or owners who were also leasing another farm, or who had leased out their farms. One ‘farmer’s wife’ who had leased out their farm said:
"Leasing - it’s sweet - [they are] paying you for the privilege - they’re responsible for everything - [it’s] a 6 year lease - 3 year renewable. Same amount of money coming and you’re living in the [same] house and you’re okay - haven’t got a mortgage or rent. I would like to get money out of the farm - turn it into hard cash - borrow and buy flats, make the money active - do feel as though we’re marking time."
One family leased out their farm because it was no longer viable and there were family reasons which made it difficult to sell. They handled the changeover by going overseas in the early stages. "It hasn’t worried me - it may not have been as easy otherwise. [You think] if he does better - what did I do wrong - there’s nothing you can say."
A number of people said they have stayed on their farms longer than they had anticipated, and longer than many from previous generations. This has come about for a variety of reasons, mostly financial ones. People talked of being unable to "pass on the farm" and have sufficient money for their own needs and insufficient money to enable the next generation to buy the farm at rates they can afford. There is also an increasing expectation that all family members will be dealt with equitably, and this is nigh on impossible for many.
Financial situations: these did not fit a continuum of bad----> better----> best - several farm families had suffered in the share market collapse and in their fifties and sixties are now paying off debt they had anticipated would have disappeared a decade or two previously.
Some of the families hit hardest by the 1980s changes have already left the area. [ see Christie 1991 for case studies of five farm families who improved their socio-economic levels after leaving their farms in another part of NZ] Living standards, generally, however, for these farm families were relatively stable. Many have reordered their priorities, such as delaying the purchase of farm equipment; some have tightened their belts so these is no spending other than on necessities, but all the farm families we interviewed had their basic needs of food, shelter and warmth well met. They didn’t even need, as one person suggested, "to live only on mutton", that is, from food off the farm.
One reason for this is that many farm families in this area prior to 1984 had already ‘pared’ living standards to a comparatively stringent level, save for what seems to the ‘townie’, excessive spending on the routine purchase of new vehicles or regular overseas trips. This is in contrast with stories of town families, many on pensions, who are struggling more now to pay rent, buy food, clothe their kids. (15 or so food parcels are given out each week in Taihape).
Leisure: for these farm families leisure was an alien concept. People spoke of the flexibility they have in terms of time and season, some of loving what they do – "is that work or is it leisure?" On the farm though there "is always work that could be done". A small number of adults played sport on a regular basis, such as winter tennis – "one day a fortnight meaning 8 days a year"; some adults defined their leisure time as the time they spent driving their children to ballet lessons or sport; some men went to the Club for a drink on a regular basis.
Several women said their husbands were reluctant to take holidays, and had to be dragged away "for the one family holiday a year", though others, mostly in the 50’s plus age group, said they travelled regularly to Europe. [ an accountant said he could name seven farmers from the area who were in Europe in May 1997] A number of families owned holiday homes in Taupo, or went to their parents’ homes on the coast. Most of these had been owned for several generations.
There was evidence of misunderstanding about leisure activities and holidays for farm families from a number of people living in Taihape. The latter were envious of the flexibility of the farming lifestyle, the midweek tennis, and the overseas trips. There is non-understanding, or talking past each other, which can get in the way of working together.
Contact for Enquiries
Rural Affairs Coordinator
Sector Performance Policy
MAF Policy
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
PO Box 2526
Wellington
NEW ZEALAND
Phone: +64 4 894 0675
Fax: +64 4 4 894 0745
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