Care is one of the four pillars of organic. When we talk about this to audiences unacquainted with organic, we tend to talk about the stewardship imperative and how we are borrowing the land from our children and our grandchildren. The organic way is to ensure that at the end of our tenure, we hand over the land under our feet in a fit state. No surprise really, given that not compromising the future in the pursuit of the present was one of the cornerstones of sustainable development when the concept emerged in the UN in the early 70s.<\/p>\n
As the organic movement fast approaches its 80th year, it’s clear that we have inherited a largely dysfunctional food and farming system, where high yielding industrial agriculture makes us pay with pollution, destruction of nature and a dietary related disease epidemic in developed countries.<\/p>\n
As the Danish Finance Minister proclaimed at last summer’s Organic Summit in Copenhagen, the world needs the organic movement now more than ever. This need for organic to continue to step up and the challenges it could face in future has led many to rethink the Care pillar.<\/p>\n
What if it’s about more than the condition of the land in 50 years? What if it’s also about ensuring there are people willing and able to work that land?<\/p>\n
Farmer demographics<\/h2>\n
It’s a shocking reality that the average age of a farmer in the UK is currently 59. Not only is that close to the point when many of us might want to spend a lot more time at the golf course, but a large segment of the farming community is older still, with around 40% of farmers in the UK are cruising towards 70. But’s is that a problem in itself?<\/p>\n
When you consider that older people can tend to be more risk-averse and less embracing of the kind of new thinking we need to shift our food systems, it’s not ideal. Much more concerning is the reality that fewer young people are entering the farming profession. A future with less farmers, and even fewer younger farmers could be a significant threat to continuity of supply and food security.<\/p>\n
Action has begun<\/h2>\n
The European Commission recently took some tentative steps toward addressing this big future challenge. No doubt motivated by elements of the EU’s Strategic Dialogue of the future of sustainable agriculture (a report that received significant input from the organic sector) which highlighted the need to consider intergenerational renewal, the Commission has presented a strategy for generational renewal in wider agriculture.<\/p>\n
It aims to support young farmers and attract more people to farming and to do this it recognises that keeping farming resilient and attractive requires young people to have the right conditions to build their lives and careers. This new strategy sets a clear roadmap for how to get there, identifying five key areas for action: access to land, finance, skills, fair living standards in rural areas, and support for succession.<\/p>\n
The world needs the organic movement now more than ever<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Initiatives identified include a lump sum of up to \u20ac300,000, to get young farmers started, facilitation of access to finance, a European Land Observatory (to help farmers access available land, support farm succession, inform policy, and prevent land speculation) and co-funding farm relief services to replace farmers during illness, holidays, or caregiving, to improve their work-life balance.<\/p>\n
And the future of organic?<\/h2>\n
Being less about the status quo and more about our future, the organic movement already attracts a more youthful farmer, but they are not exempt from the wider challenge\u2013there is still work to do to ensure organic farming remains an attractive proposition for the next generation.<\/p>\n
Our very own Farmer Ambassador Liv James spoke at our annual UK Organic Trade Conference in November, and the audience were clearly moved. Liv was visibly upset as she recounted how she and her husband had been reluctantly forced to give up on growing food. As hard as Liv and he partner tried to make their modest horticulture operation viable, they simply couldn’t make ends meet.<\/p>\n
This heart wrenching story of a dream to bring value to land, nature and people stopped in its tracks really brought it home for our audience just how hard it can be for young people to access land and bring healthy, sustainable food to local markets.<\/p>\n
As Josefine van Marlen of the Dutch Organic Youth Network observed at a recent conference: ‘We need to keep the knowledge alive\u2013and we aren’t doing enough to carry through’. According to Josefine, connection is key ‘We need networks, and they need young people’. With many farming youth movements emerging in Europe right now, it is as important as ever to ask young people what they want and what they think and to follow through into action, so it’s not seen as placating them.<\/p>\n
It’s a shocking reality that the average age of a farmer in the UK is currently 59<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
It’s also recognised that organic needs to look to other farming movements such as regenerative\u2013which have arguably less definition, but a better online presence \u2013 and ask how we can engage youth better. The good news is that not only are we in the UK, exploring entrepreneurs scheme to support younger farmers, but not so far away an Organics Europe Youth Network is being established.<\/p>\n
Organisations such as Junges Bioland (the German organic youth movement) and its many members are making real progress toward generational renewal. We were fortunate to have Lennart Bertels of the German young organic farmers movement, Junges Bioland, at our conference to share some heartening news about progress on the continent. Whether teaming up young organic horticulturalists with larger, established dairy farms so they can share costs, or creating a blueprint for other youth movements that wish to follow suit, there is no shortage of ideas coming out of the EU\u2019s largest organic market.<\/p>\n
Appealing to youth as consumers too<\/h2>\n
We were also thrilled to also have Sustainability expert, Solitaire Townsend speak at out UK Trade conference. Solitaire’s own experience has been formative in her work in sustainability marketing, cementing a belief that as brands and marketers we must connect with people and address their needs as individuals. Her message was clear – if we want to grow the organic market, we must stop preaching and start connecting. With an appreciation that doing business ethically can be tough, she issued a bold challenge to organic brands: \u201cchange your story and make the consumer the hero\u201d.<\/p>\n
Not only did Solitaire give us much to reflect on regards connecting with consumers, be they Gen-X or Alpha, or be they ‘green’ or ‘gold’ (the latter being much more led by trends and aspiration than worldviews or ethics), but she also shared much that will be relevant to those attempting to connect with younger people as consumers rather than land workers. Solitaire warns against repeating the same green claims and attempting to recruit \u201cevery single person with the same values in terms of biodiversity, animal welfare, the future of farming.<\/p>\n123rf Limited\u00a9peopleimages12<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Gen-Alpha may perhaps be the first generation to take a lead from the previous generation in wanting a healthier, fairer planet. Whilst a good cross section of Gen-Alpha could be more motivated than the previous generation to actualise this ambition, Solitaire warns us that we, as marketers of organic, need to \u201cget out of our bubble\u201d. Whilst organic markets all over Europe are back in growth again, realising our full potential will mean reaching beyond the ‘deep-green’ segment who are already on-side, and that means selling benefits, not just our own values.<\/p>\n
The youth are bought in for longer<\/h2>\n
Should you choose to read Solitaire’s bestselling book ‘The Solutionists’ you’ll find it provides some specific insights on intergenerational collaboration. The chapter: Young and Old, being hugely relevant to the topic of intergenerational renewal, reminding us of the benefits youth can bring to any business serious about sustainably.<\/p>\n
She encourages us to harness the energy, the divergent thinking, and the commitment youth brings by virtue of younger people simply being more invested in the future. We are asked in the book to consider how we bring that energy and approach into to not just the workforce, but our governance structures too. When it comes to change, yes, we need the experience, networks and resources the older generation can command, but we need youth in the mix too.<\/p>\n
“If we want to grow the organic market, we must stop preaching and start connecting”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Without appealing to the next generation of shoppers, who will buy organic food in 25 years from now? Without young organic farmers, who will grow our organic food 25 years from now? Who will continue to underpin and feed the growing consumer demand for climate, people and wildlife friendly food?<\/p>\n
Intergenerational renewal may not be a new concept, but right now the organic movement is fast gearing up to address the challenges. Whether a farmer, manufacturer or a related sector, if you represent a business, I urge you to ask what more you could do to invest in the next generation and with it, a better future for all.<\/p>\n
Author: <\/strong>Lee Holdstock, Soil Association Head of Regulatory & Trade Affairs<\/p>\n
Published in the BIOFACH 2026 Bio Eco Actual Special Edition.<\/em><\/p>\n
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