The New Generation of Farmers
By: Grace Geiger
Published: March 12, 2011

There has been a lot of talk in the press recently surrounding the new wave of young people seeking a more rural lifestyle in reaction to our damaged economy. The New York Times and Grist recently wrote about this new generation of farmers, addressing the new problems they face and how the generational gap comes into play when returning to a trade that has evolved and transformed dramatically over the last fifty years.
While it’s true that the average age of farmers is still around 60, there are many valid reasons for young people to seek out farming as a possible profession. First and foremost, the recession. With the job market still suffering, twenty-somethings are sick and tired of feeling bad about their expensive liberal arts degree, and are now wanting to get in touch with something real, something tangible. Maybe get a little dirty.
Second, this new generation of young people is getting more and more involved with local and sustainable food movements, which means getting serious and about where their food comes from (maybe even to the point of becoming obnoxious: Portlandia chicken scene anybody?). The desire to eat and produce “real food” is resulting in young people wanting to get on the land and be a part of growing the food they eat. WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) is a great example of how college-age kids are trying to get involved and reconnect with food on a physical level.
But this whole back-to-the-land movement is not something entirely new, nor is it exclusively limited to young people. The movement originated in Europe and was popularized in the United States at the beginning of the 20th century by activist Bolton Hall, who set up vacant lot farming in New York City. And there have been many movies and books written on this topic over the last few years, including a film entitled, The Real Dirt on Farmer John. So while the idea of hipsters becoming the new generation of farmers seems encouraging (what else are they going to do?), there are still problems associated with farming as an industry on the whole, and when push comes to shove, are those iPad addicted kids really going to be able to go without Facebook? Or will it be a new kind of farming where everybody Tweets his or her every move? Only time will tell.
Here's an earthy, made from scratch soup recipe for any aspiring potato farmers out there!
Potato Soup
Photos by: Flickr user Adam Arthur and khawkins04