Finance, build relationships… These new players who support the establishment of young farmers

“It was during my training to obtain the professional agricultural business manager certificate that I had the idea of ​​turning to this structure,” confides Léa. I was hearing more and more about this new type of financial organization which is helping to set up young organic or sustainable farmers. »

The most famous of these is the Terre de Liens foundation: a citizen movement born in 2003 and which, with its 1,700 volunteers scattered throughout France, multiplies initiatives to create links and support new projects. Firmly anchored in a network of regional associations, Terre de liens supports, through an agricultural property and a foundation, the acquisition of farms and land which are then rented to young farmers to facilitate their installation and contribute to the development of organic agriculture.

And it works: the movement has supported the development of more than 400 farms across the country over the years and had more than 14,000 donors and 23,000 shareholders in 2025.

Respect for the land

Fermes en vie is the other emerging name for agricultural land companies. Born in 2020 from the initiative of some agricultural engineer friends from Bordeaux, the project developed within the framework of solidarity-based social utility companies, in the same way as a solidarity property company like Habitat et humanisme has been doing for forty years in social housing. Savers-donors or testators (through bequests), but also patrons and public or private investors participate, each in their own way, in these solidarity projects. Nearly 4,000 shareholders have already joined the project, for an investment with a fairly secure average annual return of 2% to 3%.

What do the different initiatives supported have in common? They highlight the social and environmental benefits of farming rather than its simple tax benefits. At Feve, the company name is based more precisely on three pillars: respect for natural resources, inclusion in the territories and the production of healthy food accessible to all. In five years, the agricultural property company has already collected 17 million euros from institutions such as the Caisse des Dépôts, employee savings funds or banking solidarity funds, but also more than 42 million euros through individuals.

“Among the people who join us to finance these projects, there are certainly activists who are very committed to the issues of agricultural land and respect for the land, but others are just happy to get involved and help young farmers. The profiles of our shareholders are very varied,” underlines Paul-Antoine Raulin, head of investors and fundraising at Feve since 2023, who previously worked for a foundation supporting disadvantaged young people.

In 2025, the structure created an endowment fund to diversify its collection methods. “It will support the diversity of agricultural practices between mixed farming, livestock farming, agritourism (rural tourism, editor’s note)transformation of products on site, which facilitates the success of installations. »

The acquisition of the Foucaudière farm by Léa and Gary is the fourteenth project supported by Feve, out of the sixty she has supported in six years. “We very quickly felt at ease with this technical support and reassured by the expertise of our interlocutors,” says the young breeder. A necessary confidence when the investment amounts to more than a million euros… and you also have to convince the banks to obtain a loan.

After validation of the project, the solidarity property company offered the couple a twenty-five-year rural lease for the land and rental of the buildings. A real estate company was created for this purpose. Léa and Gary are associated with 2.5% of the shares. “Subsequently, we can, if we wish, buy back shares of up to 49%, or even decide to go as far as purchasing the shares altogether to become owners. »

A life-changing adventure

After putting together the file, which lasted several months, it was in February 2024 that the Foucaudière joint farming group was launched. The first 127 sheep arrived on site six months later. Today, there are 700 – that’s enough for nearly 1,000 lambs to be born each year. Over the past year, Léa and Gary have also launched an educational farm, which operates mainly during the summer. Horses and donkeys rub shoulders with pigs, geese, chickens and guinea fowl to the delight of young and old visitors alike. Is the game worth it? For Léa and Garry, the answer is obvious: “We are happy here. It was an adventure that changed our lives. »

While 5 million hectares of agricultural area are expected to change hands in France by 2030 (see infographic below)the weight of agricultural landowners remains a drop in the ocean. But for those they support, notably the two thirds of young farmers who want to set up without having inherited family land, it is no less essential.