Opinion: We desperately need to improve farm succession and avoid a food crisis – and here is what the EU and the government can do
Tax incentives for older farmers and creating a land bank for younger farmers are among the measures that can help sort out agriculture’s ageing demographic
Maria Walsh on her family farm. Photo: Ray Ryan
The demographic crisis in the farming sector leaves us with one stark question: who’s going to grow the food we put on our plates?
According to EU law, a young farmer is generally defined as being between 35 and 40 years old. Farmers under the age of 40 only manage 12pc of all farm holdings in the EU, of which female young farmers represent less than 3pc.
