According to rural insurer NFU Mutual, a third of young people living in rural Britain believe they will be forced to leave their area to find work. The company identified a shortage of suitable jobs for school leavers and people in their early twenties in rural communities.

The findings, from the insurer's Countryside Living Index, are based on the responses of 1,500 country-dwellers. Older people questioned also tended to agree that opportunities for young people now are scarcer than when they were young.

NFU Mutual chair Richard Percy commented, "This study clearly highlights the urgent challenge faced by farms and rural businesses in the UK, where the lack of financially viable opportunities for young people is potentially threatening the long-term viability of the entire sector."

Studies have consistently revealed that the cost of living in rural regions is higher than urban areas, though there are less services and amenities and reduced government spending in these regions. Young people in rural regions also tend to suffer much higher rates of unemployment than their urban counterparts.

Earlier this month EDGE, an industry-led apprenticeships programme was launched in East Anglia to address concerns voiced by Anglia Farmers and AtlasFram Group members about the widening skills and age gaps in the industry. Clarke Willis, Chief Executive Anglia Farmers commented, "The skills and age gaps in many agricultural businesses are widening, so we need to encourage more young people into food and farming to secure the future of the sector as it continues to grow. Our members have told us that there is a real need for a scheme like this which equips young people with the skills and knowledge they need to develop successful careers."

In meetings held at the beginning of March, farming Minister David Heath discussed the barriers preventing young people from excelling in the food and farming sector. Although Mr Heath claimed that "a huge level of disengagement from the countryside… prevents gifted young people from grasping the opportunities it offers," the results of a Yougov poll commissioned to coincide with his meeting suggested there is no shortage of young people eager to begin a career in farming.

Furthermore, rural unions suggested government policy itself may form an impediment to attracting young talent, as moves to abolish the Agricultural Wages Board will serve to depress wages and erode working conditions in the agriculture industry.