Speaking to the National Academy of Sciences on Education and
21st Century American Agriculture, U.S. Agriculture Secretary
Mike Johanns addressed the future of farming in the U.S. One of
the agriculture community's greatest challenges, he says, is to
inspire young people to pursue agricultural careers. First,
Johanns says, we must increase awareness of agricultural
opportunities, research, and technological advances. "Fewer and
fewer young people have a sense of where food comes from, and
most kids have no idea how sophisticated this industry has
become and how much lies before us in the future," Johanns says.
In the 2002 Census of Agriculture, the average age of U.S.
principal farm operators was 55.3. With the average farm
operator just below retirement age and the nature of agriculture
shifting towards the sciences, Johanns points out the need for a
new generation of science-oriented agricultural workers. "Many
of the young people who will replace these retirees are already
here in our educational system,