Young, Beginning and Small Farmers
Farm Credit is committed to the future of agriculture. Every year, we help thousands of beginning farmers find their path in agriculture.
Supporting beginning farmers is our mission.
A critical component of Farm Credit’s mission focuses on providing assistance to beginning farmers.
Whether they choose to focus on conventional, organic, sustainable, local food-related operations, direct-to-retail or other emerging business models, Farm Credit supports beginning farmers and ranchers of all types.
The Farm Credit Administration defines young, beginning and small (YBS) farmers as:
- Young farmers are 35 years old or younger
- Beginning farmers have 10 years or less of experience
- Small farmers have less than $350,000 in annual sales
Every local Farm Credit institution understands and responds to the needs of beginning producers. Each lender has a dedicated program for them. Examples include training and seminars on topics such as intergenerational transfer of family farms, risk management techniques, financial skills training and establishing effective business plans. For more information, visit our Farmer & Rancher Business Resources page.
Support for Young, Beginning and Small
Producers in 2023
Young Producers
Farm Credit made 47,200 loans totaling $11.7 billion to producers who are 35 years old or younger.
Beginning Producers
65,900 loans were made to producers with 10 years or less of experience, totaling nearly $18.1 billion.
Small Producers
Nearly 102,000 loans were made to producers with less than $350,000 in annual farm sales.
Non-Lending Support
In 2023, Farm Credit institutions invested $358 million in non-lending support for beginning producers.
We make loans of all sizes
At the end of 2023, nearly half of the more than one million Farm Credit loans outstanding were to small farmers and ranchers.
The overwhelming majority of Farm Credit loans are small in size. 77 percent of Farm Credit borrowers have loans between $1,000 and $350,000. Only about 6 percent of Farm Credit borrowers have loans of greater than $1 million, and those customers include many farmer-owned cooperatives, rural electric cooperatives and other rural infrastructure providers whose borrowing needs are vastly larger than those of nearly all farmers.
We support the future of agriculture
In addition to financing, Farm Credit lenders serve beginning farmers through community involvement and volunteer efforts.
We support organizations, such as FFA and 4-H, by conducting training programs, management seminars and educational retreats for young farmers and offering scholarship programs for farm youth entering college. Farm Credit also supports the Farmer Veteran Coalition and actively reaches out to veterans and returning service members seeking careers in agriculture.
Supporting beginning farmers across the country
Whether they choose to focus on conventional, organic, sustainable, direct-to-retail or other emerging business models, Farm Credit supports all types of beginning farmers and ranchers.
