A new breed of farmer is boosting the Algarve’s agricultural sector, especially in the production of honey, avocado and red fruits.
The director of the Regional Agriculture and Fisheries called this 'a revolution' and a decisive factor in the agricultural sector's growth in the Algarve with up to 500 young farmers setting up in business in the last seven years.
These new farmers are coming with qualifications in agronomy, engineering, biomedical science, pharmacology, mechanical engineering or electrical engineering, and are working on the land not only to avoid unemployment and the crisis but also because there is a certain empathy with the environment in this new generation, according to director of regional agriculture, Fernando Severino.
The official added that the boom of young people presenting investment projects under the Rural Development Programme for start-up grants peaked in 2010 from all over the Algarve with the highest number of applications coming from the Tavira council area, followed by Loulé and Silves.
This new generation of young educated farmers is bringing a dynamism to the sector with citrus continuing to be the most popular crop, followed by red fruits such as raspberry and strawberry, subtropical fruits including avocado, and honey production.
The production of honey, avocado and red fruit is mostly for export with current strong demand, according to Severino. Under the National Strategic Reference Framework 2007-2014, 1,500 projects have been approved for €232 million, with 432 of these being projects submitted by young farmers.
