We're here to represent the young farmers who don't really have a group yet. Hopefully it will come in the near future, but for now, we don't have one.
We want to present a different point of view on this topic, as people who haven't been in the industry for as many years as most people sitting at the table here. We grew up in a completely different social reality compared to everybody else who has been in the industry for many years. I'm going to try to present more of that point of view.
First of all, if the agriculture industry is going to survive in Canada, we need young people to take over from the aging farmer population. One of the key factors is whether farming is going to be a viable lifestyle, a rewarding career choice. If you look at other industries, a lot of times you can have a much better lifestyle if you go into an industry other than agriculture. That being said, there are a lot of young people who want to go into farming. They love it and that's what they want to do.
The main thing that's going to draw them there is opportunity. Is there opportunity for a good lifestyle? Is there opportunity for growth and advancement within the industry? A big part of that is going to be the strength of the industry. If there's a strong industry, people are going to be drawn to it because they want to be in it anyway.
When it comes to taking over farms, one of the biggest problems is that the older farmers are selling and dismantling farms to fund their retirement. As has been said, it's very difficult for a young farmer to come up with the money that's needed to take over a farm. There needs to be a program so that farmers don't have to sell their farms to fund their retirement. I'm not sure how it could be done, but maybe having some sort of pension plan that would take into account funding for the retiring farmer but keeping the farm in operation with a new owner would be a way, instead of selling off the farm and the young guy being on his own to find resources.
Another aspect is education. Providing knowledge to the young farmer, or to farmers in general, is key. There's a big importance in knowing what you need to know to operate your farm. A big part of that is the universities and colleges. They need to be funded and supported quite strongly. We need to make sure that any research and any development goes through the universities. If you depend on private industry for the research and the information you use for management, a lot of that information could be biased. It's profit-driven by the companies, so how much can you trust it? There's an important need for unbiased research. The best way to do that is through government and the education system.
Another aspect is educating the public about agriculture. I think that's one area that's really lacking right now. I went to high school with 2,000 students, and I was the only farmer. Probably when most of the people here grew up, they were part of their farming community. Everybody was a farmer and everybody knew what farming was about. Even if your neighbour wasn't a farmer, he knew what was involved. But now the social reality of it is quite different, and most people don't know and don't understand. I think a lot of the problems that agriculture is facing, as far as public relations and public views are concerned, come from that lack of knowledge of the public about agriculture. I think that's a key area that's been neglected in the past that really needs serious looking into.
Also, about the department and the people who farmers deal with in the government, there needs to be a lot of education for them so that they know exactly how the agriculture system works. Sometimes you deal with government officials who don't come from farms and don't even know about farming. They know the politics and they know issues, but they don't understand how farming works. So that's a key point as well.