The average Irish farmer is 58 years old. The land will outlast them but without a plan, so will the silence around who gets the family farm.

The natural progression of farming is to think about who the future custodians of the land will be and who gets the family farm "but in many cases, these conversations are not happening" according to Teagasc experts.

In a new report, Keith Fahy, Business and Technology Advisor - Drystock with Teagasc, outlines why this might be the case.

He said: "In many other professions training or education typically takes four to five years.

"So why aren't farms being transferred to farmers of a similar age?"

Dr. Emma Dillon, Senior Research Officer with Teagasc working with the National Farm Survey has also highlighted that "the average age of Irish farmers is 58, with one in three farmers over the age of 65."

But is there an ideal age to start talking about succession and handing over the family farm?

Farm transfer

Farm transfer and succession schemes that encourage early planning, simplify administrative procedures and ensure both generations benefit from secure arrangements are highlighted as a key strategy under the EU CAP Network.

According to an EU CAP Network study - Assessment of Generational Renewal Strategies across EU Member States - Ireland scored a 5.0.

This indicates 'To a very large extent' on the degree of severity on the generational renewal problem currently in Ireland.

Access to land is consistently reported as one of the most severe barriers to young farmers entering agriculture.

As previously reported by Agriland, the average price of land rose to €14,442/ac in 2025.

In the EU, between 2017 and 2022, the highest land price increases were observed in Romania, Czechia, Estonia and Ireland (with an average annual growth rate of 13.8%).

The assessment goes onto say "the least regulated land markets are found in Denmark, Ireland and Finland."

Tackling tax

Last year the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon, published the Commission on Generational Renewal in Farming report.

This includes information on the national taxation measures and the finance supports available to Irish farmers considering passing on their farm.

The report also highlights that "unintended disincentives can arise from how [tax] reliefs are structured, interpreted and applied.

"Abatements such as Agricultural Relief, Retirement Relief and Consanguinity Relief are designed for transfers within families.

"Transfers to other relatives and non-family successors do not qualify, creating an unintended barrier to viable alternatives for succession."

Interviews conducted for the Commission on Generational Renewal in Farming report found that "the most prominent concern that beef farmers had was land transfer taxation and the impact of a large tax bill on a successor."

The report also detalied that "stamp duty, although reduced to 0% for qualifying young, trained farmers, still presents a barrier due to lack of awareness and other concerns".

Other key areas identified were that tax reliefs are often underutilised because of "a lack of proactive tax planning by farmers ... and the dependence on financial advisors who may be focused on short-term tax optimisation rather than long-term planning".

Cash is king

One of the main barriers that has been identified in relation to access for young farmers entering the sector is the availability of finance.

In 2024, the European Investment Bank (EIB) introduced €3 billion in loans for agriculture and other bioeconomy activities across Europe with focus on young farmers, gender equality and green investments.

The EU Strategy for Generational Renewal in Agriculture outlines "high collateral requirements, limited credit history and fluctuating income" as possible reasons for the reluctance from financial institutions to lend.

Looking ahead

AIB's Head of Agri, Donal Whelton told Agriland, "financial management and cost control is as important to farm sustainability as technical farm management, especially in a world of increasing and more common place geopolitical uncertainty".

"Young farmers have options now that previous generations didn’t have, for example options to expand milk output in a non-quota environment, options to consider farm partnerships or share farming arrangements etc.

“While there is very often the belief that a son/daughter will take over the farm business, no communication or discussions around succession or inheritance actually takes place," he said.

Putting policy into practice

The issue of generational renewal was further underlined this week when Dairygold released its 2025 financial results.

A significant component of the report focused on its new succession programme Pathways.

The programme is "designed to support members at every stage of planning for the future of their farm enterprises."

It includes a range of succession and collaboration models, including gradual transfer, partnerships, leasing and new entrant pathways.

The programme comes as the co-operative "were told that 300 milk suppliers" were planning to retire by 2030 according to Michael Harte, chief executive officer (CEO) of Dairygold.

According to their annual report, Pathways provides "practical guidance, trusted supports and clear options for Members who are new to succession planning, actively transitioning, or considering an alternative route where no family successor is in place."

The co-operative added "while many Members have identified a potential successor, only a small minority currently have a documented succession plan in place."

'Crucial' CAP

Separately, Fine Gael MEP, Maria Walsh, the European Parliament’s lead negotiator on generational renewal told Agriland that the CAP is "crucial" for supporting young farmers.

"It remains one of the primary tools for ensuring generational renewal in a sector where people under the age of 40 account for just 12% of farm managers across the EU and young women represent only 3%" she stated.

In the urgency of safeguarding food security, Walsh added "attracting younger generations to farming is not a nice to have, but a must have."

The MEP said the profession must be "both viable and appealing and in order to invest in farming, younger generations need to be guaranteed stable incomes and effective policy tools to shield them from increasing market volatility."

Under the current CAP, member states are required to allocate at least 3% of their direct payments to support young farmers.

Walsh believes that this threshold should be "increased and complemented by a broad toolbox of measures tailored to the specific needs and circumstances in each member state."

The key messaging appears to be that the tools and the supports are there.

Evidence suggests that the farms that succeed in succession are the ones where the generation handing over found a way to let go - and the one taking over was given room to lead.