Why is there a slowdown in ag careers?

Workforce recruiters are having a hard time placing workers in rural America. On the service side, they say jobs are plentiful, but applications are few and far between.

“They think it’s an unglamorous job, possibly. They want to be more involved in a sales role or management, but like anywhere else, I think the place to be in employment right now is in service, whether it’s the retail agronomy, whether it’s starting as a technician at an implement dealership, if you have the training and skills, you can advance quickly in that industry or outside of Ag, like electricians, those types of things, are also service repair work where we’re always going to need them,” said Tammy Jensen, president of AgriCareers Inc.

Jensen encourages young farmers to stick with it and to always be willing to do more. Right now, the average age of the U.S. farmer is around 60 years old.

Related Stories
Ag Committee Chairman Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson has referred to the proposal as “Farm Bill 2.0.”
In the U.S. and Canada, reduced planted acres—not yield losses—led to a decline in potato production, while Mexico saw modest gains due to increased yields and harvested areas.
Alaska Congressman discusses his new role as Executive Vice Chair of the Congressional Western Caucus and his priorities for the West in the 119th Congress.
Farm legal expert Roger McEowen discusses the EPA’s rescission of the 2009 endangerment finding on greenhouse gases and what it could mean for agriculture and rural America.
The USDA says the framework is about “ending abusive government overreach” and “protecting farmers, families, and private property.”
Farm numbers still favor small operations, but production, resilience, and risk management are increasingly concentrated among fewer, larger farms.

LATEST STORIES BY THIS AUTHOR:

At CattleCon 2026 in Nashville, RealAg Radio’s Shaun Haney discusses profitability, consumer demand, and how the integrated U.S.–Canada beef supply chain impacts cattle producers across North America.
The USDA’s February WASDE report looms as the CME Ag Economy Barometer shows declining farmer confidence, and more ag industry groups calling for swift policy action.
San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo Association’s Trenton Priddy preview this year’s event, which is now streaming on RFD+
Dr. Peter Beetham, interim CEO of Cibus, joined us to discuss the status of EU gene-editing deregulation and its potential implications for agriculture.
Danny Munch of the American Farm Bureau joined us to discuss USDA’s latest farm income forecast, revisions to prior estimates, and what the updated data means for farmers heading into 2026.
HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy calls on cattle producers to retain breeding cows while Ivomec receives emergency authorization to prevent New World screwworm.