Strength in numbers: Celebration of Women in Agriculture

In honor of Women’s History Month, I want to take a minute to talk about the women that have shaped American Agriculture and continue to do so today.

According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) women represent 43 percent of the world’s agricultural labor force. In developing countries, women make up 40 to 60 percent of the food production-women are the priority. In America, women have had a substantial hand in the farm since the turn of the 19th century. By the end of the Second World War, more than six million vacant farm jobs had been fulfilled by young people and women alike. Almost every wife, mother, daughter jumped in a filled the jobs that were needed. They became engineers, farmers, teachers, mill workers, plowers and more. Women who did farm work were members of the Women’s Land Army of America (WLA), and these women received training, uniforms, and were known as land girls or farmerettes.

This was a necessity, just as it is today. These women set the foundation of all the generations after them, that strive to run the family farm and keep it up and functional. I was first introduced to the history of women farmers through research and the Female Farmer Project. This is a documentary project by women for women in agriculture. Personal essays, stories, and a documentary film are just a few ways they are working to empower and inform about today’s Women’s Farming Army.

We may not fully know the struggles and trials of the farm unless you are fully involved. We must look at our past to see where we have come and how we can work to improve the future of women farmers. Physically, mentally, and financially. I may just put out a garden each year, have a few chickens and horses, but does that still connect me to the farming community? Of course! The moment my hands hit the dirt, the moment I breathe in the mixture of sweat, leather, and horse, I am connected to my past in an unexplainable way. The stresses of the world are minute to the bigger picture in front of me at the time. I am proud to be a woman connected to agriculture-my heritage depends on me to educate the next generation about the importance of the farm and that anyone can do it.

Take a moment to look into your past, find the women that shaped your decisions, life, and commitment to agriculture. Celebrate them, show them that you care and are grateful for the hard work they set in order to get you where you are.

Until next time.

Source: https://www.resilience.org/stories/2020-01-30/the-rise-of-women-in-agriculture/