In this paper the authors present the results of the empirical research conducted among the agricultural students in May 1993 and in December 2000, and the agricultural experts in February 2001. The objective of the research was to determine the respondent’s attitudes towards family farming as profession. The authors point to unfavorable situation in general and professional education of farmers is a “bottleneck” of future development of family farming. First of all the process of its modernization will dependent on more intensive involvement of young educated people in this sector. The servey of the respondent’s willingness to work on family farms indicate that their preference for family farming increased from 14.8 percent in 1993 to 22.5% in 2000. Provided that family farm has sufficient arable land, farm buildings and machinery, the number of the respondents that would accept employment at the family farm is even higher in both the first (52.1%) and the second research (59.5%). And the agricultural experts have almost identical attitude towards family farming - 58,7 percent of their would accept that kind of family farm. The authors determined statistical significant connection between some demographic and socio-economic respondent’s characteristics and their affinity according to family farming.

family farming; agricultural students

Published by University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagreb, CROATIA
Sponsored by Ministry Science and Education of the Republic of Croatia