What Are the Benefits of Generational Farming?

For thousands of years, farming practices have been passed down from one generation to the next, helping to preserve and grow the knowledge that is so critical for providing communities with a reliable food supply. Even now, with many farms having gone corporate and with advanced technology providing enhanced productivity, generational farming remains not only relevant but more important than ever before.

In the following blog post, we’ll discuss a few of the benefits of keeping farms in the family and helping to boost agricultural success for this generation and for the future:

 

What Is Generational Farming?

Simply put, a generational farm is one that has been passed through a single family, generation after generation. Some of these farms are passed down over hundreds of years (the oldest one in the United States lasted for nearly four hundred years). Combined, these generational farms make up the vast majority of farmland in the United States. According to the USDA, about 86 percent of farms in the country are family-owned and are considered “small,” meaning they have a gross income of less than $350,000.

With generational farming being such a staple of agriculture in this country, it’s critical for the continuous passing down of knowledge and for innovating new farming techniques.

 

 

Shared Knowledge

The past century has seen the agricultural sciences grow by leaps and bounds, with new technologies arriving on the scene and more advanced farming techniques being developed to allow greater crop yields than ever before. Even with all this advancement, however, the best way for new young farmers to learn their trade is to do so alongside seasoned professionals. In generational farms, they do just that, as the next generation of farming professionals works closely with the current one.

It’s not just techniques the younger farmers learn from their mentors either; it’s the land itself. Each farm is different, with its own specific requirements and unique quirks. Those who have grown up working on a specific farm are uniquely suited to address its particular needs.

Sustainable Land Management

As we mentioned above, the majority of farms in the United States are generational ones. The ubiquity of generational farms means they have a unique responsibility to do their part to contribute to sustainable land management, particularly in the face of a changing climate and growing resource scarcity.

Since the plots of land they occupy are small, farmers understand the importance of ensuring every square foot remains fertile and productive. Generational farms can survive and thrive using sustainable techniques such as regenerative farming, which allows depleted land to be restored much as it is in nature.

Generational farms also contribute to sustainability by reducing pesticide and fertilizer use. Modern techniques such as Integrated Pest Management allow farmers to prevent the overuse of harmful chemicals that can enter the environment and put local ecosystems at risk.

Strong Family Ties

Generational farming preserves knowledge not only by creating an unbroken link to the past but also by encouraging the growth of strong family ties and traditions that can last season after season. This is one of its key benefits, as these family ties create intrinsic, long-term value for the farms and ensure that each generation is invested in responsible stewardship over the years.

Creating a value for farms that goes beyond the money is another way that critical farming techniques can survive the passage of time. They are more likely to be maintained if they are part of an ongoing family tradition, with children coming back to the farm to do what they were raised to do.

Strong family ties also create a clearer line of succession for the farmland. Larger, corporate-owned farms can face ownership challenges, while generational ones are passed through families along with the knowledge and farming techniques that accompany them.

Increased Productivity

The commitment generational farmers have to sustainability means they also continuously implement new techniques to increase productivity. Generational farms are leading the pack when it comes to new technologies that improve output. Our coalition, Washington Potatoes, is made up of many small potato farms in the state of Washington. Our chosen crop happens to require a fairly large amount of hydration. As a result, our generational farmers are incentivized to implement new techniques such as drip farming, crop rotation, and new varieties that use less water.

Drip irrigation is a critical method for improving the yield of crops by allowing limited water resources to go further. It does so by using tubes to deliver the exact amount of water directly to the roots of plants. This frees up more water to be used for more crops, leading directly to greater yields.

Crop rotation is another method by which generational farmers increase productivity on their farms. By alternating the crops grown on a particular plot of land, farmers can ensure the fertility of the soil season after season.

Improved Resilience

In the modern day, farms must adapt to a changing climate, as well as to environmental challenges and the increasing scarcity of resources. Generational farming helps to improve the resilience of these farms by allowing farmers to adapt more effectively since the families working them know the local ecosystems intimately and can make immediate adjustments when they notice changes.

Generational farms also help to prevent land fragmentation, where land is broken up as it is passed from owner to owner. If it remains continuously in the hands of a single family, then a farm can continue to be used to its maximum potential without having to repurpose it every time it changes hands.

For more information about generational farming and why it matters so greatly for land management, explore the Washington Potatoes website. Our coalition of family-owned farms is paving the way toward a more sustainable future.