Worrying: many 60+ farmers without a successor
A majority of Dutch farms with a farm manager aged 60 or over have no successor on the farm. Differences about the succession situation by sector are large.
This is according to the annual inventory compiled by AgriDirect in 2021 and 2022 of information on the age and succession situation of more than 14,500 farms spread across the various sectors.
Average age of farmers in the Netherlands
The survey shows that the average age of the farm manager is 58 years. Arable farmers and fruit growers are the oldest with an average age of 59. In contrast, goat farmers are the youngest with an average age of 54.
Of the farms surveyed, on average, more than 1 in 3 farm managers (36%) are over 60 years old. Farms with arable farming count the most over-60s at 42%.
Only a quarter of farm heads (24%) are under 50, although goat farming has the most 50-minners at 37%. In contrast, fruit farming has the fewest 50-minners at 20%.
Succession situation 60+ farmers
Looking at the succession situation among farms with a farm head aged 60 or older, less than half (45%) say they have a successor. Within this age category (60+), livestock farming has the most successors (poultry 69%, goat 65%, dairy 61% and pig farmers 56%). Thus, livestock farming has a higher percentage of successors than the crop sectors (open-field vegetables 51%, arable farming and flower bulbs 47%, fruit 39%, greenhouse horticulture 33% and arboriculture 31%).
Share 60+ and no successor
In summary, 20% of agricultural farm heads where no successor is ready (yet) are 60 years old or older. In the livestock sector, 19% of poultry farms, 13% of pig farms, 12% of dairy farms and 8% of goat farms have the farm manager aged 60-plus, while no successor is known. In the crop sectors, this is the case for 26% of tree growers, 22% of arable farms and fruit growers, 21% of greenhouse growers and 16% of flower bulb farms.
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