WOMEN represent just 13.4% of farm holders in Ireland, according to a new study which has, for the first time, provided an in-depth profile of female farmers in Ireland and says that the agriculture sector needs to attract women in greater numbers to ensure future sustainability.
The study, concucted by researchers from MTU, Maynooth University and Teagasc, has identified the barriers female farmers face and policy changes that could tackle them.
Since 1991, there has been little increase in the percentage of farm holders that are female, according to the study.
The study also found that female farm ownership is highest in areas where farm sizes are smaller and land values lower, farm incomes for female farmers are consistently lower than for male farmers and they receive lower direct farm payments, and over half of Irish farmers do not have an identified successor in place and where there is an identified successor, over 80% are male.
‘There is a dominant norm of the farmer as male, stoic, the decision-maker and unwilling to seek help, the woman is viewed as helper, while the son is commonly considered the family heir,’ explained Dr Martina Roche, of Maynooth University’s Department of Geography who is principal investigator on the project.
‘This impacts on the work of each person on the family farm, and importantly on each person’s legal status, as well as farm family finances and decision-making patterns,’ she said.
Some of the issues identified by researchers include: a lack of access to land, succession issues and the challenge of combining farm work, off-farm work and caring responsibilities.
The spouse of the farm holder, who is often a woman, faces additional barriers produced through the intersections of tax, social welfare and agriculture policies.
The study found that women do not feel they have the right to identify as a farmer.
‘They understand that at a community level they are expected to fulfil the “woman as helper” norm and that they may be queried, ridiculed, and/or incur social penalties if they transgress that,’ Dr Roche said.
‘It is important for women and other under-represented groups to self-identify as farmers, among other roles, and for all members of the sector to value the work they do on farms and to recognise their legitimacy in the agriculture sector.’
The report calls for dialogue and awareness raised around the challenges facing the sector such as advancing gender equality, generational renewal and improved work-life balance.
It also seeks discussion on gender equality in agricultural education, including reviewing and revising educational courses, mentoring programmes for rural women entrepreneurs, and better data collection including a gender analysis of existing data as well as the compilation of female-focused data.
‘Women have always been integral to the family farm but often their crucial role has not been fully recognised or acknowledged,’ said Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with responsibility for research and development, Noel Grealish.
