Farming has never been easy, but for those now launching careers in agriculture, the hurdles are higher than ever. “There’s a massive barrier to entry that’s never been there before,” said Evan Shout, co-founder and CFO of Maverick Ag, an agricultural consulting and risk management firm. He believes the higher-than-ever cost to take up farming is the greatest challenge and restriction facing today’s new and young farmers. “These days, it’s hard to start from scratch, you almost need to have a family farm to play in the game.”