Where are all the Young Farmers?

There are less and less young farmers coming back to take over today’s farmers jobs. Today’s farmers can not feed the world forever.  This might be because of the hard labor involved with the job or even the fact that most kids do not know the benefits to farming especially kids from urban areas who have not grown up on a farm or rural community. This topic is interesting to me for many reasons.  First of all I have a farm/agriculture related background and have helped a farmer (my dad) for just about my whole life.  Farming is a very possible career choice for me.  It is important to know that although farming is a risky business that anyone can be successful at it with a good work ethic and good decision making no matter what your background is.  Also, farming is not an all year round job.  There are periods of time where you work long hours constantly but only for a short while which makes the job very bearable.  The heart of this issue is to get young farmers to step up and take the place of the farmers ready to retire.  Hard work is all that comes into mind when I think of farming.  You only get as much out of it as you put into it.  This may be confusing to some people but if you do not have a hardworking attitude in this business chances are you probably won’t be successful in it.  I feel this “felt sense” all through my body as I remember the long hours I have put into farming by helping my dad and remember that feeling of accomplishment after the end of every hard worked day.  The point I am trying to make is that more people should get involved in farming.  It might be hard work at times but it pays off in the end.  The feeling of accomplishment from this job is indescribable and that anyone can do it not only people with ag backgrounds.