The largest farm in France has opened its doors in Paris: the 60th Agricultural Show started this Saturday and runs until March 3. An edition marked this year by the anger of the agricultural world and an observation repeated year after year: in 10 years, a third of farmers will be old enough to retire. Where are the young people? They are the ones who will take over from the parents in a few years. But despite the passion, taking over a farm and settling down represents a major challenge for aspiring farmers, who wonder about their future.
Danaé says it herself: she was born with a tractor steering wheel in her hands. At 18, she is in BTS and plans to take over her father’s farm in a few years. In the family, the subject is regularly raised, with a few caveats: “ I have reached an age where he talks to me about it. He tells me : “You know, the job isn’t all pretty and rosy. I want you to be aware of this and see all aspects of the profession, especially the bad ones.“. But I know that he believes in me enormously and that I will succeed, because he tells me : ‘”You have a head on your shoulders, you know what you’re doing.” »
Danaé: “I wonder if I’ll really make it”
With grandparents and great-grandparents who were farmers, not taking over the farm was not an option for Danaé: “ I grew up with exploitation from the moment I was born and we know it by heart, I can’t see myself abandoning it. » Her elders may have succeeded despite the difficulties, but Danaé still asks herself questions about the challenge of settling in: “ Of course it scares me, because I wonder if I’m really going to make it… And that, I don’t know. But deep down, I know that I am capable of it, even if I have fears. »
Rémi: “Training myself so as not to be in difficulty like my parents”
In Rémi’s family, in the final year of high school, we have been farmers for seven generations. “ For the little anecdote, I said the word tractor before the word mom », laughs the young man. He wants to take over the family business with his brother, but he shares the same fear as Danaé: debt. “ The first difficulty is finding the means of financing to set up. Land is becoming more and more expensive and to invest, banks need to follow suit. So yes, I’m afraid I won’t be able to repay everything I’m going to put on my back », explains Rémi. To anticipate this obligatory transition and learn how to best manage a farm, training in an agricultural high school is an asset. “My mother regrets not having had enough management knowledge. So, she and my father pushed me after my final year to continue my education in BTS to have a good foundation in management, to know how to make decisions at the right time, and not to be in difficulty like they were in difficulty », develops Rémi.
Martin: “Agriculture is evolving quickly, it’s impossible to plan ahead”
Martin will soon take over his mother’s organic farm. He is more of an optimistic nature: “ I tell myself that we are made for this and that we will succeed! », reassures the student. Like his comrades, he would like to have more perspectives, to project himself more easily. But he is aware of it, he will have to grow and support a profession in the midst of upheaval: “ The agriculture of tomorrow will necessarily be different from that of today, because there are products that have been banned, methods that have changed, new crops have arrived and it is the logic of producing more ecologically. Today, lists Martin. The conclusion is that we will see where we will be in 50 years. Agriculture is evolving rapidly at the moment to the point that it is impossible to project into the future. »
Faced with uncertainty, they all brandish the same argument: what keeps them going and hopeful is passion for the profession.