Passing The Torch: The Future of Small Family Farms

I’m sitting in the living room of James Brown and his son, Graham, of Octomore Farm discussing what is becoming a rare event: the passing of the family farm to the next generation. James’s family moved to the farm as tenants when he was just eight. There were five of them in one room; no electricity, no bathroom. They began with dairy farming; eventually, James’s father was able to buy the farm in 1983 and when the local dairy closed, they moved on to raising cattle for beef. James himself has always been a part of the farm operations but took over fully in the mid-1980s. He diversified its income first by selling the Octomore spring water to the distillery, then by cultivating barley, and eventually, as many farmers now do, through holiday lets. Through his ingenuity (and no doubt his legendary charisma), James has made a success out of an extremely difficult business. Now facing his retirement, he’s lucky to have one of his own interested in taking over the family business and seeing the Octomore legacy continue. 

To anyone with an interest in agriculture, it’s a well-known fact that the number of farmers is in sharp decline globally. According to the UK government, 38% of principal famers and holders are 65 years or older, while only 15% are under 45 years of age. Globally, the average age of farmers stands at 60 years old. All of this begs the question: who will grow the food of the future generations? 

Yet there is hope. At the same time there’s a decline in the number of farmers, in some places in the world there is a resurgence of interest in farming by younger generations. The American Farm Bureau Federation states that 30% of all farmers are beginning farmers (as opposed to those who come from a background of farming), while NPR reported that the membership numbers for the National FFA (Future Farmers of America) are at the highest they’ve ever been. Meanwhile, the National Farmer’s Union (NFU) show that pockets of the UK are seeing a significant increase in young farmers. The Suffolk Young Farmer’s Club membership, for example, reports a “a steady resurgence in numbers in recent years”.  

These seemingly incongruent points – the rising average age of farmers and the simultaneous increase of interest in farming by younger generations – seem to suggest that there’s a gap between the desire to make a career of farming and the ability to actually pursue it. Perhaps the most important step we can take towards encouraging younger people to make a career of farming – particularly with small, family-operated farms – is to understand why it matters and what the obstacles are to this generation. 

There are a wealth of reasons to support small, family-operated farms. Environmentally speaking, small farms often prioritise sustainable practices and promote biodiversity as well as crop diversity. When local markets are available, they decrease our dependency on shipping, which reduces CO2 outputs. These farmers also have specific knowledge about local growing conditions and traditions, which means greater resiliency to environmental changes. Socially, family-operated farms contribute to the local economy, which benefits the community both economically and through social ties. When we have a connection to our food through these community ties, we are more motivated to protect the local biodiversity and our fellow community members, creating a stronger, more resilient network. 

One of the changes we’re seeing in farming is in the demographics. In what has historically been a male-dominated industry, about one-third of new entrants to farming – those who don’t have a family background in agriculture and haven’t lived on a farm – are women.  

“That’s way above average,” says Lee-Ann Sutherland, a researcher at the Social, Economic and Geographical Sciences Group at the James Hutton Institute in Scotland. “Society is becoming more egalitarian generally, so more people can think farming a really interesting career or lifestyle choice,” says Sutherland. “It’s rebalancing the historic trend.” 

The rising interest in agriculture by those who are new to it undoubtedly has some relation to the increasing number of agriculture programs available to primary and secondary students. The FFA Organization, for example – one of three components of agricultural education in the USA – is an intracurricular student organisation for those interested in agriculture and leadership. The organisation has a presence in 23 of the 25 largest cities in the US, bringing a greater understanding of food production to those who are most disconnected from it.   

Many of the younger generations pursuing careers in agriculture do so out of an interest in contributing to positive, forward-thinking solutions. As we become more informed about how our food is produced, the connections of that production with sustainability and climate change, as well as its impact on human health, we are naturally more motivated to make positive changes. For others it’s as simple as a desire to move away from sedentary office work and be outside on the land more, or to have the more varied work that comes with farming.  

Last harvest season I sat down with 22 and 21-year-old brothers Zach and Angus Glover, who have been slowly taking over their father’s farm in Portnahaven on Islay. The two seem to have been born with a passion for farming (they bought their first tractor from another local farmer, with a bottle of Bruichladdich no less). Like every farmer I’ve spoken with, their reason is the same: it’s the lifestyle. Although both did training in the trades (joinery and plumbing), they’d rather be out on the land, working with their cows. 

Graham Brown, who trained and worked as a bricklayer in Edinburgh before returning to Islay to work as a stillman with Bruichladdich and is now taking over Octomore Farm, repeats this sentiment. “I like being out on the land. No two days are the same.” 

Graham never found this statement to be more true than when six of Octomore’s stirks (their one-and-a-half-year-old Highland heifers) decided to go for a swim in Loch Indaal in May and needed to be rescued by boat.

The cost of equipment – exacerbated by the size and incredible technology involved in today’s machinery – is also prohibitive. And while farm subsidies are available, they’re awarded proportionally based on farm size, favouring large farms over medium and small holdings. Bureaucratic processes and long wait times likewise do nothing to mitigate the obstacles facing new farmers. 

As James Brown says, “Before, there wasn’t a lot of machinery around – you only bought what you really needed. Now there’s big machinery and everyone’s got it. At one time you could say one hundred lambs would buy a tractor. Now you need a thousand.” 

Another issue is the image people have of farming. Agricultural work is widely seen as risky, laborious, and difficult to make any money in. Mary Nyale, programme coordinator for Farm Africa’s Growing Futures project in western Kenya, says that agriculture “was used a lot in primary and secondary schools as a punishment.” It’s difficult to compel a new generation towards a particular career choice when they’ve been raised to view it as a punishment.

Farmers themselves can be some of the first to discourage their children from following in their footsteps.  

“Our parents told us consistently the whole way through not to do farming,” Zach tells me.  

“They still say it,” adds Angus. 

“They still say ‘you’re making a mistake. Go and do something else.’” 

The brothers tell me their father took up farming for the same reason they did: a love of the lifestyle. The problem, they reckon, is that when you get older, you see your neighbour down the road with the BMW and the nice house entering retirement. An exit strategy for farmers is rarely as straightforward. 

More so than equipment and image, however, the number one greatest challenge globally to those wishing to enter farming today is the lack of access to affordable land. In their Route to Success survey, the National Federation of Young Farmer’s Clubs, with support by Defra and Lantra, found that finance and land opportunities were the main barriers to new entrants in farming. 72% of those surveyed responded they thought it would be difficult or impossible to move into farming. 

Change is possible, however – indeed it’s essential. If the world is to continue feeding itself and the aim is to do so in a sustainable manner, then small family farms must be supported. The approach must me multifaceted, from government subsidies that support land access for smaller farms, and policy that values the family farm in all its dimensions – entrepreneurial, organizational, and psychological – to social actions that help to shift the image of agricultural work. Many of these actions are already underway. Agricultural education in school is becoming common, with children learning about the industry through the lenses of sustainability, business, social networks, and technology. The UK government offers a Young Farmers Start-Up and New Entrants Start-Up grants for those taking over or starting a new agricultural business. 

The most powerful way to make change is not always in broad, sweeping actions, but in small, quotidian ones. The Glover brothers, for example, had the support of other farmers on the island, who sold them equipment at a greatly reduced price to help them get started. The support of community members is invaluable. Without Octofad providing the service of weighing and drying the barley locally, the grain would have to be sent to the mainland, making it too expensive for Islay’s farmers to grow for the distillery.  

And of course, there are the markets that businesses provide farmers. Whether that’s as simple as a space for a weekly market for growers to sell their produce, offering a higher market price to local farmers as Bruichladdich Distillery does with the Islay’s farmers that supply its barley, or committing to buying a crop to reduce the farmer’s risk.  

Diversification is often the way farms today manage to survive and even become successful. James Brown’s wife Sheela went into teaching to bring in extra income. “And I became a male model,” jokes James. Which, if you’ve noticed how often he features in Bruichladdich’s photos, events, and storytelling over the years, you’ll realise he’s actually not wrong. 

Jokes aside, many farms have turned to holiday lets, glamp sites, and farm stays to supplement their income. Others collaborate with businesses in inventive ways: providing a niche product like Coull Farm’s rye or Octomore’s spring water, both of which are bought by Bruichladdich Distillery. Without the distillery buying barley at a higher-than-market price, "people wouldn’t do it,” says James Brown. “They wouldn’t be able to afford to do it.”   

One of the things that has made Octomore such a success is that the Browns have viewed it not just as a farm, but as a business and a brand. “We do it [grow the barley] because of the name – the name of Octomore has put us in demand.”  

These collaborative efforts, encouraging young farmers to view agriculture through an entrepreneurial lens, are key to attracting their interest and essential to ensuring the future of small family farms. 

"James’ legacy is woven into the fabric of Bruichladdich.  As he hands over the reins to Graham, I’d like to say a personal thank you to James. A valued farming partner, a steadfast friend, and always with an unforgettable story to tell - some of which are even true! - we wish you all the best. Farmers don’t retire of course, but it’s great to see the next generation come through.  I’m sure we’ll see you at the distillery soon for a wee ‘sweetie’ or two."

Adam Hannett