Young Farmers Flock to the Good (Inexpensive) Land

from the Portland Press Herald

In Maine, Old MacDonald gets younger

Maine’s average farmer is 57, right in step with the national average of 58. But the 2012 Farm Census showed a steep gain statewide – 40 percent – in the number of farmers ages 25 to 34. Here is a county-by-county breakdown of the demographic shift between 2007 and 2012. The biggest gains were in Piscataquis, Franklin, Cumberland and Waldo counties, all up by 100 percent or more.

See their interactive map at http://www.pressherald.com