2022 SPECIALTY CROP AUTOMATION REPORT
As minimum wages have increased, farmers have tried to achieve the same production levels with less labor. The labor input (measured in annual working units, which are equivalent to one individual working for one year) into agriculture has fallen significantly as a result, by 16 percent since 2011. The main drivers behind the decline are increased mechanization and automation,
a higher number of large farms that require less labor on a per acre basis and more attractive career opportunities in other sectors for young professionals. 62 This trend is similar when looking at data from 2000 onwards. It is also accelerating, with a 3 percent annual decline since 2016, versus a 1 percent annual decline from 2011 to 2016.
AS MINIMUM WAGES HAVE RAPIDLY INCREASED ACROSS EUROPE, LABOR INPUT IN THE AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY HAS SIGNIFICANTLY DECLINED
Hourly minimum wages and labor input index(annual working units]; 2011-2020
Minimum wage [€]
-15.8%
9 10 11 12
70 80 90 100
95
94
93
91
90
92
88
87
84
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80
8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
60 50 40 30 20 10 0 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Labor Input Index
North West Europe Minimum Wage
Southern Europe Minimum Wage
Eastern Europe Minimum Wage
Figure 29: Labor input index [annual working units] and hourly minimum wages [€] since 2011, by European region Source: Eurostat, Roland Berger
As total labor input has declined, so has the number of farm managers. The number of farm managers in the EU declined by 23 percent between 2007 and 2016 (see Figure 30) due to farm consolidation. 63 Notably, the number of managers aged below 35 declined more than any other age group. In 2016, just 5 percent of managers
were under 35. This suggests that younger generations are not joining the agricultural labor force at a rate at which they can replace retiring older generations. The flight of younger managers is akin to what happened in the U.S., where the average age of principal farm operators is now 58, up eight years from 1982. 64
62 Agricultural labor input statistics | Eurostat 63 Labor force main indicators | Eurostat 64 Size and Composition of the US Agricultural Workforce, 1950-2000 | USDA
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