Upskilling and reskilling the EU agricultural workforce: action-oriented recommendations

This document presents eight action-oriented recommendations to improve skills in the EU agri-food sector developed by members of the EU CAP Network's Thematic Group (TG) on Nurturing Skills for a Thriving and Sustainable Agricultural Sector. The recommendations target various levels of policymaking and outline concrete measures, key actors to be involved, enabling factors and the expected benefits.  

The TG had clear and comprehensive objectives. First, it aimed to delve into the needs and opportunities associated with agricultural skills development and continuous improvement. The focus was on the agricultural workforce (both employees and self-employed workers), emphasising the acquisition of (new) skills crucial to strengthening farmers within the food-supply chain.

An equally important objective of the TG was to identify specific skill gaps and explore the potential of measures within CAP Strategic Plans and other EU, national and regional funding sources that support agricultural skill developments. These measures aim to foster collaboration, promote sustainable development and economic growth in rural communities, and also include a focus on the opportunities offered by Producer Organisations.  

All the outputs produced by this TG, including a collection of good practices and an overview of possible approaches for skills development, are available on the Thematic Group page.