As the country’s farmers and ranchers reach retirement age and their replacements dwindle, a program has sprung up to match beginners with established agricultural know-how. So-called Land Link programs operate in about 20 states and offer a variety of programs to help agricultural aspirants get a partnership stake in a venerable industry with notoriously low yields and skyrocketing entrance fees.

More than preserving agricultural legacies, Land Link, which was created by the Center for Rural Affairs (CRA) in Nebraska, teaches real-world skills. The 100 Beef Cow program, for instance, provides recent ag grads with cattle as well as finance and marketing strategies, making them more of a partner than a hired hand. In exchange for their land, established ranchers get new energy on the range and ideas for protecting their agricultural legacy. The CRA also organizes programs to train young ranchers in finance and marketing, as well as production.

One challenge has been to find landowners willing to make their land available for leasing by young farmers and ranchers—especially important out West, where land prices are hardly aligned with what the land can produce or sustain.

“Land access is the critical issue and we need to find ways for existing landowners to make their land available,” says Wyatt Fraas, who heads the CRA’s programs for beginning farmers and ranchers.

Fostering partnerships between young and old involves more than creative financing or training marketing-minded ranchers and farmers, according to Frass. Communities and schools need to enlist young people.

“Government can help at the policy level to make the risk a little less,” Fraas says.

“This is not just energy and new ideas, but it’s about continuing the legacy. Most senior farmers and ranchers would love to be an adviser to somebody... They know what it takes to make the land work and that knowledge should not be lost.”