Assemblage and the ‘good farmer’: New entrants to crofting in scotland

Abstract In this paper we advance the conceptualisation of the ‘good farmer’ through integration of Bourdieusian concepts with DeLanda’s assemblage theory. Considering new farms as assemblages is useful to unlock the relative power of association amongst component parts, and to understand what drives the emergence of a farm. Utilising an empirical case study of new entrants to crofting in Scotland, we assess the interlinked processes of new symbolic capital formation and new croft establishment. Following Bourdieu, the ‘good farmer’ concept provides an approach to identify how established and shifting norms of crofting shape new holding establishment. Findings develop the materiality of social and cultural capital formation, with ‘good crofting’ ideals coded in relation to land capacity, practical experiences working the farm, multifunctional transitions and crofting legislation. New entrants actively ‘territorialise’ (define) their crofts by integrating new markets and management practices. The historicity of new farm assemblage is evident in the active mobilisation of historic images to inform expectations of productivity. The authors argue that integration of assemblage theory with Bourdieusian concepts elucidates the flexibility of farming forms and identities, the role of ‘more-than-human’ actants in farming identity construction, and the role of legislation in shaping understanding of what farming should entail. This is important for academics and policy makers alike concerned with the efforts to revitalise rural and agrarian economies.