NOrdBruk is a Swedish smallfarmers organisation with contacts in Finland and Norway - the Nordic countries - called "Norden" - in Scandinavian language. The Swedish word for agriculture is jordBruk (jord = soil - bruk = use - to use the soil) Nord+Bruk = NOrdBruk. In old relations between France and Sweden - France was represented by the Sun - le Soleil, and Sweden was represented by the Northern (Pole) Star - l´ Etoile polaire - Nord-stjärnan.   Different from Norway and Finland, from political reasons, depending on decisions taken in the thirties, the small farmers in Sweden havn´t been so well organized. In the agricultural system based on negotiations between farmers and the state, on prices on the products, it was decided that all farmers should be represented only by one farmers organisation. Before Sweden became a member of EU (1 January1995) the parliament 1990 took a decision to deregulate the farming and leaving the farmers to compete on the so called "world market". After1990 at first, with a so called "free market", and no more negotiations on prices between farmers and the state, the small farmers could begin to make their voices heard. But after 60 year behind some sort of an "iron curtain" it wasn´t easy for small farmers to compete with the "establishment".   After joining the European Union 1995 the optimism flourished for some time, but today faced to the fact that Swedish farmers, together with the portuguese farmers, have the lowest profitability in EU, and the hardest taxes, not many believes in a future for family farmers in Sweden any longer. And therefore not many can see any meaning in organizing themselves. There are for sure two organisazions for small farmers, wich stayed alive 60 years i exile, but they are not intrested in co-operation over the nationalboarder, at least not so far.   Thats why some people aware of the necessity, as member of EU, to keep in touch with farmers in other parts of Europe, and even the rest of the world for that matter, started NOrdBruk some years ago. Some of us have had informal contacts with CPE even before joining the Union. And NOrdBruk has together with CPE arranged two coferences in Sweden - 1997 ln Stockholm, the capital of Sweden - and 1999 in Ås in northern Sweden not far from the Polar circle.