Thursday, November 23, 2017

"Getting On the Land"



What a phrase loaded with imagery, "Getting on the land." It's when a new, freshly-minted young farmer gets on the land to put in his first crop.  If he does have it figured out and makes a go of it, he may have permanently indentured himself to his present and future vocation.

The good news, according to the Washington Post is that young Americans are beginning to ditch their desk jobs to try to prove their hand at farming.

For only the second time in the last century, the number of farmers under 35 years old is increasing, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's latest Census of Agriculture. Sixty-nine percent of the surveyed young farmers had college degrees — significantly higher than the general population.

This new generation can't hope to replace the numbers that farming is losing to age. But it is already contributing to the growth of the local-food movement and could help preserve the place of midsize farms in the rural landscape.

"We're going to see a sea change in American agriculture as the next generation gets on the land," said Kathleen Merrigan, the head of the Food Institute at George Washington University and a deputy secretary at the Department of Agriculture under President Barack Obama. "The only question is whether they'll get on the land, given the challenges."

The number of farmers age 25 to 34 grew 2.2 percent between 2007 and 2012,according to the 2014 USDA census,a period when other groups of farmers — save the oldest — shrunk by double digits. In some states, such as California, Nebraska and South Dakota, the number of beginning farmers has grown by 20 percent or more.

A survey conducted by the National Young Farmers Coalition, an advocacy group, with Merrigan's help shows that the majority of young farmers did not grow up in agricultural families.



They are also far more likely than the general farming population to grow organically, limit pesticide and fertilizer use, diversify their crops or animals, and be deeply involved in their local food systems via community supported agriculture (CSA) programs and farmers markets.


Today's young farmers also tend to operate small farms of less than 50 acres, though that number increases with each successive year of experience.
...
"I get calls all the time from farmers — some of the largest farmers in the country — asking me when the local and organic fads will be over," said Eve Turow Paul, a consultant who advises farms and food companies on millennial preferences. "It's my pleasure to tell them: Look at this generation. Get on board or go out of business."

There are also hopes that the influx of young farmers could provide some counter to the aging of American agriculture.

The age of the average American farmer has crept toward 60 over several decades, risking the security of midsize family farms where children aren't interested in succeeding their parents.

Between 1992 and 2012, the country lost more than 250,000 midsize and small commercial farms, according to the USDA. During that same period, more than 35,000 very large farms started up, and the large farms already in existence consolidated their acreage.

Midsize farms are critical to rural economies, generating jobs, spending and tax revenue. And while they're large enough to supply mainstream markets, they're also small enough to respond to environmental changes and consumer demand.

If today's young farmers can continue to grow their operations, said Shoshanah Inwood, a rural sociologist at Ohio State University, they could bolster these sorts of farms — and in the process prevent the land from falling into the hands of large-scale industrial operations or residential developers.

"Multigenerational family farms are shrinking. And big farms are getting bigger," Inwood said. "For the resiliency of the food system and of rural communities, we need more agriculture of the middle."
It's too early to say at this point whether young farmers will effect that sort of change.

The number of young farmers entering the field is nowhere near enough to replace the number exiting, according to the USDA: Between 2007 and 2012, agriculture gained 2,384 farmers between ages 25 and 34 — and lost nearly 100,000 between 45 and 54.


And young farmers face formidable challenges to starting and scaling their businesses. The costs of farmland and farm equipment are prohibitive. Young farmers are frequently dependent on government programs, including child-care subsidies and public health insurance, to cover basic needs.

And student loan debt — which 46 percent of young farmers consider a "challenge," according to the National Young Farmers Coalition — can strain already tight finances and disqualify them from receiving other forms of credit.

But Lindsey Lusher Shute, the executive director of the coalition, said she has seen the first wave of back-to-the-landers grow up in the eight years since she co-founded the advocacy group. And she suggested that new policy initiatives, including student loan forgiveness and farm transition programs, could further help them.

"Young farmers tend to start small and sell to direct markets, because that's a viable way for them to get into farming," Lusher Shute said. "But many are shifting gears as they get into it — getting bigger or moving into wholesale."

This is really terrific news. Why? Because we're probably going to need this cadre of new era agriculture to teach us very quickly how to grow enough food to feed ourselves right here at home. That could be the "skilled labour" of the future.


7 comments:

Danneau said...

What? a glimmer of something positive? Thanks. It's great relief from the usual, even if it is just a glimmer.

The Mound of Sound said...


That's how I felt about it also, Danneau.

Owen Gray said...

I concur, Mound. My own concern -- having lived in a rural communities for over forty years -- is the crushing debt load which the beginning farmer faces.

The Mound of Sound said...


I think if we're to have a healthy, balanced society, Owen, we're going to have to offset some of that debt as a social cost. Helping ambitious young farmers "get on the land" could offer a template for other modes of economic rehabilitation. Gar Alperovitz has done some interesting work on a co-op economy in which workers purchase and operate factories and shops, bringing the means of production out of the hands of the often predatory rentier class.

Anonymous said...

Anyong......In Canada we waste about a third of the food we produce. And yet four million Canadians experience food insecurity. In partnership with the Arrell Food Institute at the University of Guelph, we hear from Dawn Morrison whose work focuses on Indigenous food sovereignty and Bryan Gilvesy, a long-horn cattle rancher who puts sustainability first. Part 2 of a 2-part series.
Ideas
Long-horn cattle rancher Bryan Gilvesy describes how he harvests the power of the sun to feed cattle.

I say the indigenous people of Canada have the knowledge of how sustainable farming can develop which is needed to produce food in Canada. Huge pesticide and fertilizer farms do not spell sustainability but kill the land. First, the wet lands have to be restored while providing the source of nutrients for the soil and natural fertilizers keeping the soil alive.

Northern PoV said...

Re Owen's comment........

(Traditional, adapted by Ry Cooder)
(D) - (A) - (E)

(A) We worked through Spring and Winter, through (D) Summer and through (A) Fall
But the mortgage worked the hardest and the (E) steadiest of us all
It (A) worked on nights and Sundays, it (D) worked each holiday
(E) Settled down among us and it never went (A) away

The farmer comes to town with his wagon broken down
The farmer is the man who feeds us all
If you only look and see I know you will agree
That the farmer is the man who feeds us all

(A) The farmer is the man, the farmer is the man
He buys on his credit until (E) Fall
Then they (A) take him by the hand
And they (D) lead him from his land
And the (E) merchant is the man who gets it (A) all

The farmer is the man, the farmer is the man
He lives on his credit until Fall
With the interest rates so high
It's a wonder he don't die
But the taxes on the farmer feeds us all

Well, the banker says he's broke and the merchant stops and smoke
But they forget that it's the farmer that feeds them all
It would put them to the test if the farmer took a rest
And they'd know that it's the farmer that feeds them all

The farmer is the man, the farmer is the man
Lives on his credit until Fall
Well, his pants are wearing thin
His condition, it's a sin
'Cause the taxes on the farmer feeds us all
.................................
My roommate at college (1971) was from a very small town in farm country. He said that this was very typical of the sentiments he listened to back home. It is pure Thomas Piketty (labour vs capital) in retrospect.

Enjoy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UjPbiYOybs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UjPbiYOybs

The Mound of Sound said...


Thanks, NPov. I'm a fan of Ry Cooder, John Hiatt and the Little Village band with Nick Lowe and Jim Keltner (also of the Wilburys). It's funny when you can recall the lyrics of old songs, word for word, but can't remember why you're in the kitchen.