Following a call for tenders published by the European Union Agency for Occupational Safety and Health (EU-OSHA), Wise Angle, in collaboration with KU LEUVEN and EY, are proud to have produced an extensive report, summary document, and slide deck on mental health and psychosocial risks in the agriculture sector.
Agriculture is among the world’s oldest occupations, having shaped societies for millennia. Although most populations historically lived in agrarian systems, successive waves of urbanisation, industrialisation, and, more recently, digitalisation have profoundly transformed agricultural practices, workforce dynamics, and the social standing of farmers. At the same time, societal perceptions of agriculture continue to evolve and, in some contexts, are undergoing significant shifts.
EU mental health policy recognises these concurrent transformations - making it clear that while farmers are essential workers, psychosocial risks in the sector are largely overlooked. Consequently, calls to action appealed to Member States to raise awareness of mental health issues among farmers and for a dedicated EU OSHA report on the challenge[1].
The WISE, EY, KU Leuven consortium responded to this challenge by producing a comprehensive literature review, combined with targeted stakeholder consultations, to raise awareness about the diverse issues influencing mental health outcomes in the sector on EU-OSHA’s behalf.
Using mixed qualitative research methods, we identified that mental issues in the agricultural workforce are influenced by the complex interaction of macro, meso and micro factors. For instance, changes to subsidy schemes or market prices can have detrimental ripple effects on farmer’s short-term income and long-term farm viability. At micro level, financial pressures can directly impact succession plans; many older farmers find themselves working into old age as their children choose not to continue the family business[2]. What’s more, farmers are on-call 24/7, 365 days a year, work in isolated conditions, and are constantly exposed to climate and time pressures impacting their financial sustainability, work-life balance, and relationships. While small and medium farms are rapidly disappearing[3], 5 out of 6 farm owners are employed elsewhere and many may be responsible for managing farms of at least 50 hectares. On a positive note, the proportion of female farmers is increasing, although specific gender-related risks were identified.
Despite the stereotype of close-knit rural communities, social isolation, loneliness, and feelings of alienation – linked with internal and external stigma - are co-occurring risks impacting farmers’ help-seeking behaviours, feelings of self-worth and belonging. What’s more, calls and demands for sustainable farming practices increase pressures including the need to digitalise and modernise. This is because changes to longstanding agricultural practices are resource intensive and require financial investment, dedicated time for learning and development and altered work practices. At the same time, intensive, large-scale farming, combined with increased regulation and administrative demands are major concerns and risk factors impacting mental health outcomes. Finally, some farmers may feel their working practices are poorly understood and condemned, even as ever-growing populations depend on reduced numbers of farmers numbers to address their basic nutritional needs.
Equipment, chemical and animal handling subject farmers and farm workers to specific occupational health risks that have clear consequences on their physical health. While the report targeted mental health outcomes the entwined relationship between physical and mental health could not be ignored. What’s more, while it may not be a surprising finding to those who live in farming communities, research found that farmers regularly experience suicidal thoughts, experience high levels of anxiety, burnout and depression and have excess suicide rates.
The report recommends that reducing the impact of mental issues, associated with masculine and rural cultures and economic risk factors, requires joined up programmes and solutions provided by policy, public health providers and civil society. Fourteen examples of promising interventions along with an extensive set of evidence-based policy recommendations are provided for inspiration.
Since the report’s publication in December 2024, our consortium has been delighted to welcome the following indirect actions linked to the identified risks and potential mitigation actions, which speak directly to the macro and meso factors identified in our analysis:
- A targeted policy brief by the SafeHabitus Horizon Europe project translating the report’s recommendations into actionable guidance.
- A CAP Simplification package which:
- increases financial support for small and organic farmers.
- Reduces CAP-related administration.
- Provides business development for small farms.
- An EU Strategy for generational renewal in agriculture supporting incentives targeting farmers’ work-life balance and the creation of a dedicated women in farming platform (currently underway).
- An EU Parliamentary report targeting generational change in agriculture.
- A Vision for Agriculture and Food, presented by the European Commission in February 2025, which aims to make farming a viable and attractive career by fostering fairer incomes and positions for farmers in the food chain.
Read the full report here.
[1] European Commission. (2023). A vision for agriculture and food: Shaping together an attractive farming and agri-food sector for future generations (COM(2023) 298 final). Publications Office of the European Union. https://health.ec.europa.eu/document/download/cef45b6d-a871-44d5-9d62-3cecc47eda89_en.
[2] Eurostat. (2024). A look at European farms: Agricultural census results (KS-01-24-024-EN-N). Publications Office of the European Union. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-catalogues/w/ks-01-24-024.
[3] Eurostat. (2024). Farms and farmland in the European Union – statistics. Statistics Explained. Publications Office of the European Union. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/SEPDF/cache/73319.pdf.