Generational Renewal and Farm Succession: Insights from Ireland

Abstract

We use Teagasc National Farm Survey (NFS) data to establish a better understanding about the age profile of people engaged in farming in Ireland and the related issue of farm succession. Insights are drawn from related research on the potential for farm partnerships to assist in improving generational renewal. The findings from the Teagasc NFS indicate a more complex relationship between economic performance and farm succession than is typically portrayed in the economic literature. The results indicate that in the non-dairy cattle system, the proportion of farm operators with an identified successor is lower for viable farms relative to non-viable farms and lower relative to viable farms in other farming systems. Cluster analysis of a sample of dairy farms indicates that the presence of young people in the household is just as important as farm economic viability in determining whether or not a farm successor is identified. The Teagasc NFS analysis indicates that many farms have young people contributing in terms of labour but delayed succession means fewer young farmers taking the role of farm manager. There is scope to increase the use of Farm Partnerships as pathways for younger farmers to progress from contributing labour on the farm to taking on a management role in the farm.