I recently wrote a piece for farmland magazine that was published in their latest edition. I really enjoyed writing a piece to promote women in agriculture… I didn’t know how many of you had had access to the magazine so I thought I would post it here for you to read. You can read the magazine here as there are some great pieces in it! Without further ado, here is the post:
These days as young girls we are told that we can do anything. We can be teachers, lawyers, doctors, firefighters, anything we want! So why are so few young girls considering a future in farming? They say that farming is the biggest job on the planet so why leave women out of it?
Many girls struggle to get into farming because they are told that it isn’t a woman’s job, it’s too demanding or they aren’t capable. When in fact, women can be just as strong and just as capable as men. Some of my friends say that when they’re out and about in their wellies and boiler suits that everyone presumes that they are horsey and not farmers, just because they are girls. It is important to open people’s minds up to the idea of women in agriculture, so it becomes more commonplace and is more widely accepted.
Another friend of mine was studying Agriculture at College but decided to switch to doing an Animal Science degree specialising in Agriculture as it would give her more opportunities than she would have gotten as a female farmer. Sexism definitely does exist in the industry in simple ways such as a lack of good quality, affordable and durable work clothes for women that are readily available for men. I know that we are starting to break through the barrier but we are far from being rid of the problem.
There are so many inspirational women to look up to in the industry doing great things for farming, especially in the UK. One of the women that inspires me is Amanda Owen (Author of The Yorkshire Shepherdess) but there are so many more out there! It is important for any girls interested in the agricultural industry not to be put off by antiquated responses towards a career in farming. If you are a young person trying to make your way in agriculture I would say don’t give up, you have to step out of your shell and show them what you can do!