Generational renewal in the agricultural sector and young farmers

This publication reviews the evaluation findings in the CAP evaluation database related to generational renewal in the agricultural sector, start-ups and other support for young and new farmers.

From over 600 evaluations in the CAP evaluation database, 26 evaluations by Member States and the United Kingdom have been identified as relevant to the CAP and generational renewal/young farmers.

This edition of CAP Evaluation Insights gathers the available empirical research on the topic, grouping findings with a similar focus and drawing first conclusions on the trends observed in these evaluations covering the previous CAP programming period.

The findings identified are divided into six themes associated with the start-up support to young farmers: a) its effects in relation to agricultural generational renewal; b) effectiveness and relevance of the support in overcoming barriers to enter the agricultural sector; c) effects on the competitiveness at farm level; d) evaluation findings related to training and information activities offered to young farmers; e) effects on employment and territorial development; and f) long-term sustainability of farms obtaining start-up support.

Considering that only 26 evaluations – from over 600 available in the CAP evaluation database – assess the situation of young farmers, this leads to the conclusion that only a limited effort has been made so far to review generational renewal and the effectiveness of start-up support to young farmers, both at Member State and regional level.

However, in the evaluations reviewed, some of the findings identified as particularly relevant were that access to land, as well as lack of knowledge and skills, were confirmed to be the main barriers to entering the agricultural sector. Also, insufficient budget for start-up support and lack of relevant targets (e.g. total share of agricultural land to be managed by young farmers/new entrants) were identified as areas for improvement to increase the effectiveness of start-up support in contributing to agricultural generational renewal.

The edition of CAP Evaluation Insights also contains ideas on overcoming common challenges confronted while undertaking these evaluations, based on a sample of evaluations that have undergone in-depth appraisals by experts in the field. The appraisals suggest that assessing the impacts of Rural Development Programmes on generational renewal is very challenging, partly due to the limited number of beneficiaries of start-up support compared to the total number of farms.

Generational renewal is one of the Specific Objectives of the CAP for the 2023-2027 programming period. Given the limited number of CAP evaluations dealing with generational renewal and young farmers, the topic warrants further investigation at Member State level. This report aims to encourage the reader to go deeper into the evaluations reviewed. It should serve as a reference for the reader looking for examples of findings from the evaluations undertaken by the Member States and inspire future evaluators by promoting good evaluation practices.