Across the country, the aging of American agriculture is evident as pointed out by the 2012 Census Of Agriculture. Nationally, the average age of the principal farm manager is 58 years old. So, the time is ripe for GenNext Growers to step up and engage with leadership in the ag industry. In the coming months, the GenNext Growers Network will air a series of webcasts to provide young leaders with professional development advice so they can prepare to take the baton from the previous generation. The first webcast in this series, “The Insider’s View: Working With Lawmakers And Agricultural Associations To Shape A Better Future,” is now available for viewing online. I served as moderator in this discussion with Ben Albritton, Florida District 56 Representative, and Mike Stuart, president of the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association, offering: Advice to help you successfully express the needs of your business to law and policymakers at home and in Washington D.C. Insight on the role you can play with your local, state, regional, or national associations and how they can help your farming operation Real-world examples that show how critical it is for GenNext Growers to be involved now to ensure a strong future for our industry. Clear And Present Need During the webcast, Stuart said the aging of the farming population presents a real challenge for associations like FFVA. “Just here in Florida, more than two-thirds of principal farm operators are older than 55,” he said. “And, about half of those people are older than 65. So the question is: Where is the next generation of leadership going to come from? We all are dealing with policy issues like water and labor reform, but at the same time, there is this potentially huge problem of filling leadership roles in the future.” Given that growers make up less than 2% of the population, the demographics show up in the representation of elected officials in state legislatures and in Washington, D.C. “If you look at the Florida legislature, there are 160 folks in Tallahassee — 120 in the House and 40 in the Senate,” Albritton said. “Altogether, there are about seven or eight elected officials that have a distinct connection to agriculture. That is a pretty small number.
Posted on: Tue, 02 Dec 2014 12:27:37 +0000
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