In recent years, the Italian agriculture has seen a steady leakage of labor force so as to show up today with the following characteristics: a high number of workers sixties, slow generational turnover of work and the trend towards feminisation of the industry. For several years, INEA, as part of cooperation with the Centre for Youth Entrepreneurship (OIGA) and the National Rural Network, follows the above phenomenon to analyze the demographics of the agricultural entrepreneurship, its characteristics and its dynamics. At the same time it analyzes the requirements to identify specific public policy interventions. 

It is the context in which two specific research activities are part entrusted from OIGA  to INEA: the first dedicated to the birth and failure of agricultural enterprises, the second to the study of the issues that determine the definitive closure the company and its needs for intervention. 

This volume presents the results of this studies. The surveys are addressed to the youth entrepreneurs in agriculture and also show an insight on businesses run by women, a phenomenon that it went increasing over the last decade. The work gives an overview of young entrepreneurs in agriculture, male and female in terms of dynamics, structural capacity and needs intervention, on the eve of the new EU programming cycle of the Rural Development Policy 2014-2020, which may be the knowledge base from which to the definition of policy instruments in favor of these types of farms.

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