Spain: the new generation is trying to save the countryside with data and robots

In recent years, the debate on European agriculture has focused mainly on farm profitability, farmers’ protests, the Green Deal and food security. Far less attention has been paid to a question that is set to become crucial in the coming decades: who will farm the land when the current generation of farmers retires?

In Spain, the issue takes on a particular dimension. It is one of the European Union’s leading agricultural producers, the world’s leading producer of olive oil, one of the largest exporters of fruit and vegetables, and one of the pillars of the Mediterranean agri-food sector. Yet, like much of southern Europe, it is facing the gradual depopulation of its inland areas. Entire municipalities are losing population year after year, whilst the average age of farmers continues to rise.

Generational renewal, however, does not simply mean persuading a few young people to stay in the countryside: it means completely rethinking the economic model of farms. The stories gathered across Andalusia and Cantabria illustrate precisely this transition: the emergence of a new professional role that combines entrepreneurial, technological and environmental skills.

It is a transformation which, according to the Andalusian Association for Rural Development (ARA), is already changing the character of many inland areas.

“Over the last few decades, a huge effort has been made by all those involved in the rural sector, and today there has never been such significant recognition of the role of rural areas,” explains a spokesperson for the association. This recognition, however, does not eliminate the imbalances between town and country, which remain very pronounced in various regions of the country.

Andalusia offers a unique vantage point. Almost 90 per cent of its land area is classified as rural, and almost half the population still lives outside the major urban centres. There are over 700 rural municipalities in the region, and around two million young people live in these areas. This critical mass means that their involvement is crucial to the region’s economic future.

For decades, however, there has been just one implicit message for young people: studying meant leaving.

“Many young people still believe that there are no opportunities in rural areas and that everything is easier in the city,” continues the ARA spokesperson. “Staying put is seen as less valuable than choosing to leave. It’s right to go out into the world, gain an education and gain experience, but the real challenge is to bring that human capital back to rural areas to create new economies that are compatible with the changes currently taking place.”

Returning to the land does not, therefore, mean a return to the past. Young people who decide to return do not want to replicate their parents’ farming model. They are looking for co-working spaces, entrepreneurial networks, start-ups, digitalisation and the circular economy. They are far more attuned to issues of environmental sustainability and social inclusion, and view the farm as a business to be developed, not simply inherited.

European funds have played an important role in this process. For over thirty years, the LEADER programmes have been funding the modernisation of rural businesses and supporting the creation of new economic activities. The projects funded range from agri-food workshops to digital businesses, from co-operatives to wine tourism initiatives, right through to youth centres and community spaces. It is not just a matter of supporting agriculture, but of making small towns places where people can build a life for themselves.

Because the problem, as the association goes on to explain, is not just about finding a job. Young people are calling for housing, efficient transport, services, public spaces and places to meet. In other words, they want living in a village not to mean having to give up the opportunities offered by the city. It is a challenge that goes far beyond the agricultural sector and concerns the very future of rural Spain.

But whilst Andalusia sets out the strategy, it is in Cantabria that this transformation is taking concrete shape. Here, amidst green pastures and small family-run farms, a new generation of agricultural entrepreneurs is experimenting with production models that are radically different from those of their parents. Some have transformed their old family farm into an artisan dairy open to schools, whilst others manage hundreds of cattle using robots, sensors and smartphone apps. Two different stories, united by the same conviction: the future of agriculture lies not in nostalgia, but in innovation.

In Cantabria, Luis Pérez Portilla, aged 35, has transformed the family business into a hub of innovation. His grandparents used to rear cattle, whilst the next generation had gradually moved away from the business. He and his brother chose a different path: to study, gain experience abroad – Luis worked in France, learning from the best cheese producers – and then return home.

Luis Pérez Portilla. Credits: Ana Somavilla

Returning home, however, did not simply mean taking over the family legacy. In 2018, the two brothers opened the El Pendo dairy, introducing Jersey cows – which are better suited to cheese production – and choosing to process part of the milk produced themselves. Today, the business does not just sell raw milk: it produces artisan cheeses, manages its own distribution, takes part in local markets and organises educational visits for schools and families.

“We need to diversify. Our aim isn’t simply to break even, but to be able to make a living from this work,” says Luis. Their farm combines selling milk to the industry with processing, direct sales, meat production and educational activities – a model that now supports three families. Even the by-products of processing are reused: the residual whey is used as fertiliser, in line with the principles of the circular economy.

For Luis, however, innovation also means rebuilding the relationship between consumers and agriculture. “We need to educate the consumers of the future,” he explains, describing the visits organised with schools. In his view, large-scale retail has made consumers increasingly unaware of where products come from and the work involved in producing them. “When something is handmade, the price cannot be the same,” he observes, pointing out that even a small dairy must meet the same health and quality standards as a large industrial producer.

But there are still many challenges. Price volatility, production costs, international tensions and the difficulty of ensuring profitability are putting particular pressure on small businesses. Luis is also concerned about the sector’s future: ‘The worst thing that could happen is losing our food sovereignty’. Yet, despite the difficulties, he continues to believe in his work. “For me, farming isn’t just a job: it’s a legacy.”

Whilst Luis Pérez’s dairy explains how to increase the added value of production, Gonzalo Vázquez’s farm, on the other hand, demonstrates how technology is changing the role of the farmer.

On his farm in El Tejo, in Cantabria, there are around 300 head of cattle, 150 of which are used for milk production. Around 5,000 litres of milk are milked every day, but the day-to-day work is very different from that carried out by the previous generation. The cows are milked by two automated robots, and each animal wears a smart collar that communicates with an app installed on the farmer’s smartphone. On his phone, Gonzalo can monitor in real time how many times each cow has been milked, how much milk it has produced, how much time it has spent walking, resting or ruminating, as well as any anomalies that might indicate health problems.

“We’re constantly striving to improve so that we can make a living from the land, but under better conditions than in the past,” he explains. It was he who, after taking over the family farm in 2010, decided to invest in robotic milking and automated systems for cleaning the barn. These technologies do not eliminate the farmer’s work, but allow him to focus more on managing the farm and to achieve a better work-life balance. “Today we can supervise the work, not just carry it out,” he explains.

Digitalisation, however, does not solve the problem that Gonzalo considers to be the most pressing for the future of Spanish agriculture: finding land to farm.

Like Luis, he too sees access to land as the main obstacle to young people entering the sector. On the one hand, thousands of farmers are approaching retirement without a successor; on the other, those who would like to set up a business face enormous difficulties in buying or renting land. “There is a disconnect between those leaving the industry and those who would like to enter it,” he observes.

In some parts of Cantabria, the problem is exacerbated by growing demand for property. Interest from city-based buyers, drawn to second homes in rural areas, has driven up the price of agricultural land. “Even if I wanted to expand the farm, I often can’t do so because the land isn’t for sale or has become too expensive,” he says.

This is a phenomenon that extends beyond individual farms and explains why the Spanish government has placed access to land at the heart of its strategy for generational renewal. Economic incentives and funding from the Common Agricultural Policy are, in fact, likely to prove insufficient if young people are unable, first and foremost, to find a farm to take over or land in which to invest.

Added to the land issue is that of profitability. Gonzalo sells his milk to the dairy industry for around 60 cents a litre and points out that consumers are often unaware of the work involved in producing the final product. “We must continue to add value to our products,” he says, pointing out that the primary sector is the one that continues to ensure food reaches people’s tables.

That is why he is already looking ahead to the next step. Having automated a large part of his farming operations, his aim is to further increase added value by processing at least part of his produce himself. This is the same direction taken by many young Spanish farmers: not just producing raw materials, but controlling an ever-greater share of the supply chain, from processing to marketing.

The stories of Luis and Gonzalo illustrate two different yet converging paths. The former chose to diversify his income by focusing on food processing and a direct relationship with the consumer; the latter invested in technology to improve efficiency and quality of life. Both, however, face the same obstacles: difficulties in accessing land, low profit margins and the need to restore social and economic value to agricultural work. It is on these issues that the future of generational renewal in Spain hinges.

*This article is part of the European collaborative journalism project “Pulse”