Satisfaction levels of büyükbaş livestock operators who benefit from young farmer project in Adana

In recent years in Turkey, there has been seen a significant increase in separation of young population from the agriculture sector. One of the reasons for the migration of the young population from the village to the city is the decrease in animal husbandry. In the report of the Rural Development Action Plan (KKEP) prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in order to improve animal husbandry and reduce the migration reasons of the young population in our country; the issue of "Encouraging Young Farmers" was discussed and it was planned to support young farmers in 81 provinces. Although many of its features are similar; the concept of "young farmers" can be defined in different ways in different sources. According to definitions of "young farmers", published in the official newspaper in Turkey; it is expressed as "Real persons between the ages of 18-40, who reside or want to reside in rural areas and who want to or have already engaged in agricultural activities". Türkiye'de nüfusunun yaklaşık yarısı 30 yaşın altındadır. There is an unemployment throughout the country and also employment opportunities need to be increased. Alternatives are being developed for both providing job opportunities for young people and enabling them to stay in rural areas. Supports for young farmers started in 2016 and include those engaged in both crop production and animal production. In this study, 86 cattle breeding enterprises; that benefited from the support of the ministry in 2016 and 2017, in Adana's Yüreğir, Çukurova, Sarıçam, Feke, Saimbeyli, Ceyhan, Karaisalı, İmamoğlu, Yumurtalık, Karataş, Aladağ, Kozan, Pozantı and Tufanbeyli districts; were tried to reveal their satisfaction. Most of the beneficiaries of the support are women farmers. The animal numbers of the producers interviewed has increased, but the producers emphasized that the animals given are imported and their milk productivity is low. They stated that they could not fully benefit from the goverment support since they did not have enough information.