4,5 million of European farmers are expected to retire in the next 10 years. Who will replace them? MEP Milan Zver and CEJA, the European Council of Young Farmers, organized a public hearing in the European Parliament that tried to answer this question.
Only 6% of Europe's farmers today are below the age of 35. Europe needs young farmers to bring new energy, fresh ideas and new knowledge to be able secure its own sources of food at affordable prices and to keep the countryside populated. On the European level we should take care to make the farming more interesting for the youth with more attention given to training, technology and research that can improve the lives of young farmers. We should also keep in mind that the new CAP (Common Agriculture Policy) should truly prioritise young farmers, with a wide-ranging set of policies in the form of a Young Farmers Package
Among the speakers of the hearing there were the president of the EPP group in the EP and former Vice-President of CEJA, Joseph Daul, Austrian MEP Elisabeth Köstinger and CEJA President, Joris Baecke. Together with young farmers’ representatives from Slovenia, Ireland and France they debated the future of European farming. The event was attended by many representatives of the European institutions and more than 100 young farmers from 7 EU member states. After the hearing the speakers of the public hearing held a press conference in the European Parliament in Brussels.
