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05.01.2015 | permalink
U.S. agriculture faces lack of young farmers, loss of local knowledge
Across the United States, farmers are getting older and fewer young operators are entering the agricultural workforce than in the past, according to a new study published in the December issue of the journal Rangelands. The authors write that the family farms that once dotted the landscape and employed nearly half the U.S. workforce have been replaced by large, often mechanised, operations that employ just 2% of the country's workforce. As long-time farmers grow older, it is becoming increasingly difficult to pass on the family farm. As a result, the number of farms has dropped 63% since 1900 and farm size has increased by 67%. The researchers looked at demographic trends among farm and ranch operators in Wyoming to see if and how the agricultural community was ageing. Based on their results, they paint a gloomy picture: At the current pace of agricultural ageing, there won’t be any farmers under the age of 35 by 2033. By 2050, the average age will be 60, and 34% of all farm and ranch operators will be of retirement age (65 and older). Even if their children and grandchildren show an interest in agriculture, farmers often cannot afford to keep their land and equipment. In addition, the draw of more profitable enterprises, often in urban areas, is a source of migration away from rural landscapes and farming. According to the authors, the demographic trends in Wyoming mirror those seen across the United States. They conclude that the loss of farmers, ranchers and their land is accompanied by the loss of local wisdom. “Agricultural wisdom, often built over generations, is irreplaceable once lost. Grazing practices finely tailored to the individual pasturelands, knowledge of local disease and pest cycles, water conservation strategies that work in tandem with local flora or geologic features - these are forms of place-based knowledge whose subtleties are carried by local operators and which might begin to fade if professional managers begin to dominate”, the study warns. (ab)