Millennial Farmers. NewsWire

NewsWire: 10/9/21

• The number of farm producers under age 35 grew 11% from 2012 to 2017. While young farmers still make up just a small share of total farmers, their ranks are growing as the number of middle-aged farmers is shrinking. (The Wall Street Journal)
• NH: During pandemic lockdowns, many Millennials spent their time playing Nintendo’s Animal Crossing (NTDOY). In the game, users spend hours upon hours planting and harvesting crops. Its mindless simplicity proved soothing while the world was seemingly in chaos. 
• But for some Millennials, farming is more than a video game. It's an occupation. According to the USDA’s farm census, 8% of US farmers are under age 35. But that share is growing. The number of young farmers grew +11% between 2012 and 2017. For farmers ages 35-64, the number shrank by -2%. 
• These Millennials are certainly leaving their mark on the industry. Many aren't from traditional farming backgrounds and are adopting cutting edge eco-friendly technology. These techniques usually require smaller farms, and the organic produce can sustain higher price margins. (See "The Future of Agriculture: Graying, but Also Greening.") Dream Harvest, a Millennial-founded greens producer, specializes in vertical farming, a technique that doesn’t use soil. For them, agriculture isn’t just about selling crops but about using sustainable practices.

Did You Know?

• Don’t Just Buy, Subscribe. In April, Best Buy launched a pilot of its first subscription service in a handful of stores. Members receive unlimited tech support and other perks like free installation, discounted repairs, extended return windows, and up to two years of protection on most purchases. Now the company is rolling it out nationwide. Called Totaltech, the program costs $200 a year. In announcing the expansion, Best Buy also unveiled a new perk: Subscribers will get special pricing and access to hard-to-find products during the holiday season. This is clearly intended to entice shoppers worried about recent supply chain shortages and is an attempt to give Best Buy a leg up on competing services offered by Amazon and Walmart—especially given that Totaltech is more expensive than either of those companies’ subscription services. Investors have already given Best Buy’s venture into subscriptions a thumbs-up: Shares rose +1.3% following the announcement.