Crime and threats against Swedish animal production – The perspective of Swedish farmers

• In Event: Farm crime victimization: a global perspective

Abstract

Farmers with animal production in Sweden can experience different types of criticisms directed against their activities from consumers, the media and inspecting government agencies. On another level, threats, damage, tampering, robbery and other criminal acts are directed against the farm's activities, but also against the farmer, family members and employees. This study main goal is to investigate the nature of the experiences of victimization materialized as threats, crimes and criticism against animal production in Sweden. This is achieved by assessing the consequences for individuals and farms, health, social and economic conditions. Interviews with farmers, focus groups as well as data coming from official statistics as well as media coverage will underlie the methodology of this study. We focus on farmers not as ‘victims’ but rather as ‘active agents’, by illustrating ways that farmers handle, cope and respond to the criticisms and threats they are exposed in a daily basis. In this presentation, we discuss preliminary results of our ongoing research project on crime, threats and criticisms against animal production in Sweden that is carried out by Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU-project leader), Federation of Swedish Farmers (LRF) and Royal Institute of Technology (KTH).

Authors

• Vania Ceccato, Royal Institute of Technology, KTH

• Peter Lundqvist, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

• Catherina Svennefelt, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

• Eva Göransson, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

• Anders Drottjz, Federation of Swedish Farmers