CEJA highlights barriers to farm entry
CEJA president Joris Baecke spoke at the ‘CAP post 2013’ conference organised by the European Commission. Speaking before Agriculture Commissioner Dacian Ciolos, Baecke identified the barriers to farm entry as being “access to land and credit”.
“Too many young farmers are being denied access to land by attachment to the land by the older generation to financial & economic reasons that do not motivate the land owner to sell their land at an affordable price to new comers,” Baecke affirmed.
He went on to say that “access to the profession and first years of installation are key for the young farmers, and many times this transitionary period, just like many other business start ups, is the make or break time”.
Solutions
A financial package, such as subsidized loans and credits available for young farmers to be used for long-term investments and development should be put in place, Baecke told the audience.
For the CEJA President the new CAP should “place generational renewal as a priority” so that young farmers can maintain the ”diversity of agriculture, in an innovative, dynamic and entrepreneurial way that provides food security, preserves the environment and supplies environmental goods and services”.
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