Fewer and Far Between: Less people who are in agriculture have farming backgrounds

A Midwest cooperative says there is a big problem on the horizon as they are finding fewer graduates have a background in agriculture.

“That talent base that we are getting out of our universities continues to shrink, that talent pool continues to shrink, and I think one of the things that we’re seeing, too, is that the number of kids are coming off the farm that go to college and they are looking for a job in the industry, is getting fewer and far between. So finding that person who has on-farm knowledge, the basic understanding of how our farm works, is getting fewer and far between,” said Jason Weirich, the executive vice president of operations at MFA Incorporated.

Weirich says this has forced them to expand their talent pool. He tells aginfo.net that despite a lack of farming background, they still have many young people showing up with a desire to help America’s farmers and ranchers.

Related Stories
All eyes will be on today’s Cattle on Feed Report, which analysts say could give a clearer picture of where the market goes next.
More than 100 pork producers traveled to Washington to meet with lawmakers and underscore the threat to small family farms.
Now the Senate must pass a version of the spending bill before the Sept. 30 deadline.
American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) economist Danny Munch explains how the Emergency Livestock Relief Program application process differs from other USDA aid programs.

LATEST STORIES BY THIS AUTHOR:

Dr. Jeffrey Gold, President of the University of Nebraska, notes that many heart-related conditions can be prevented through lifestyle changes.
Support policies that keep U.S. biofuels at the table—marine demand could materially lift corn grind, crush margins, and rural jobs.
FarmHER Katey Jo Evans joins us to share her journey from farm wife to entrepreneur and advocate for reducing food waste.
China is not one of our top suppliers of cooking oil, according to USDA ERS data, but does export a lot of used cooking oil to the U.S. for biofuel production.