America’s next generation of farmers needs a new path to land access

By Drew Blankenbaker, VP of Farmer Relations

ROANOKE, Ind. — American agriculture is entering a period of historic generational transition. According to the American Farmland Trust, in the next 15 years, 40% of farmland is expected to change hands. The decisions around ownership, land access and stewardship practices will shape the future of farming and rural America for decades to come.

This inevitable transition carries even greater significance as demand for organic food continues to grow. Organic foods now represent a domestic market exceeding $78 billion annually, yet only about 2% of U.S. farmland is certified organic. Nearly half of all organic soy and wheat consumed in the U.S. is imported.

For American farmers, that imbalance represents an opportunity. Expanding organic production can strengthen farmer economics, improve soil health, increase water quality, and build the long-term value of the land. But transitioning farmland from conventional to USDA organic takes time, stability, and capital, all of which can be difficult for farmers, especially younger farmers, to secure when farmland is increasingly expensive.

Young and beginning farmers often struggle to compete with rising land prices and well-capitalized buyers. As the average U.S. farmer nears retirement age and farmland inevitably changes hands, the choices made about ownership, access, and transition will help determine whether we are building the organic future our food system needs. Farmland is unlikely to become more affordable in the years ahead. The challenge is not simply the price of land, but the lack of pathways for farmers to access it without taking on unsustainable risk.

This moment should be a wake-up call.

Farmland is more than a financial asset. It is the foundation of our food system, the backbone of rural economies, and a generational inheritance that has sustained communities for centuries. If we want organic agriculture to grow in the decades ahead, farmland must remain accessible to the people who steward it.

For many farmers, the greatest barrier is capital. Purchasing farmland requires a large down payment, often before a farmer has had the opportunity to build equity in an operation. That reality has pushed too many talented farmers to the margins and made long-term land security harder to achieve, especially for farmers pursuing organic transition. Organic transition is not a one-year decision. It requires long-term stability in land tenure, making access and lease structures as important as price.

Farmers improve land over time through careful stewardship. In organic systems, that work is especially visible in healthier soil, more resilient farmland, and stronger long-term farm viability. Those investments strengthen the land itself, yet the farmers creating that value do not always have a clear pathway to share in ownership.

If we want to build an organic future for all Americans, farmland transitions must better align ownership, stewardship, and long-term opportunity. We need approaches that remove barriers for farmers while keeping farmland in production and expanding opportunities for those committed to long-term stewardship.

There is no single solution for every family or farm. Some will keep land in the family, and some will sell. Innovative tools such as Iroquois Valley’s 721 Farmland Exchange structure allow landowners to exchange farmland for ownership shares in a professionally managed farmland portfolio. For landowners who want to retire from farming but keep their land in agriculture, this structure can provide a path forward while preserving the land’s value.

Farming does not happen in isolation. Strong agricultural systems are built through networks of farmers, infrastructure and local markets that support success. Concentrating farmland transitions in regions where organic farmers already operate can help strengthen these ecosystems, allowing farmers to share knowledge, build market access, and support the infrastructure needed for organic production to scale.

The future of farming depends not only on who owns the land, but on whether the systems around that land create stability, opportunity, and a reason for the next generation to stay connected. By expanding access to land and supporting models that prioritize stewardship and farmer success, we can help build a future in which the next generation of farmers thrives.

Please note, this piece was originally published by Morning AgClips on April 20, 2026.