Wanted: Big crop of young farmers and ranchers

U.S. Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan sees an epidemic of sorts sweeping across America’s farm and ranch land. It has little to do with the usual challenges, like drought, rising fuel and feed prices or crop-eating pests.

The country’s farmers and ranchers are getting older and there are fewer people standing in line to take their place. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is beginning work on its 2012 census, and Merrigan is afraid the average age of agricultural producers will be even higher when the data is compiled.

Nationally, the latest agricultural census figures of 2007 showed the fastest growing group of farmers and ranchers are those over age 65, while young farmers, under age 25 show the largest decrease. Merrigan is traveling to colleges and universities across the country in hopes of encouraging more students to think about agricultural careers.

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