Unearthing Stumbling Blocks to Farm Succession & Land Mobility

Intergenerational family farm transfer is a complex and highly topical issue. Joint farming ventures (JFVs), including arrangements such as farm partnerships, share farming and contract rearing, have been advocated within Irish farm transfer policy discourses as succession models that can enable young farmers to become formal partners in the family farm business. They also allow the older generation to remain active and embedded in the farming community. While appreciating the merits of JFVs, the low levels of land mobility currently experienced in Ireland indicate that a clear disconnect exists between the younger generation’s readiness to begin their career in farming, and their parents’ lack of preparedness to hand over the farm. The sheer number of family farms, their aggregate impact on the agri-food industry, and the potential economic and social losses that may occur as a consequence of this phenomenon, demand a deeper probing into the mindset and mannerism of older farmers

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