The new women in agriculture task force, announced by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon at the Royal Highland show in June, met for the first time this week. Co-chaired by Cabinet secretary Fergus Ewing and farmer Joyce Campbell, the taskforce sets out to make sure that women are better represented in farming.
The single biggest barrier to women’s entry into agriculture is culture, according to the Women in Farming and the Agriculture Sector report commissioned by the Scottish Government. Passing on large farms to one son has been institutionalised culturally rather than legally, presenting a barrier for females that want to get into farming.
Despite this, women seem to play an important role in decision-making and accounting on farms. The fact that over half of respondents said they had a role in day-to-day decision-making, but nearly 70% are responsible for book-keeping, brings to mind the phrase about ‘talking to the man in charge, or the woman who knows what’s going on’. Just 15% of respondents were the primary decision-maker on their holding and 41% said their skills were being underutilised on the farm.
The wide range of data collected by the report will be the baseline that will inform policies made by the new taskforce to address the issue. Over 1,300 women from across Scotland participated in the research carried out by Newcastle University and the James Hutton Institute, between June 2016 and March this year.
It highlights the fact that women are under-represented among the elected leadership of farm organisations. For example, while over 1/3 of farm operators are women, the NFUS has no women as national office holders – despite the fact that around half of NFUS staff are female.
The majority of respondents wanted more women as leaders, but only 1/3 were interested in becoming more involved in taking up positions in farm organisations. Interestingly, the Scottish Association of Young Farmer Clubs (SAYFC) was the most common provider of leadership experience to women in Scottish agriculture.
Over half of women in the survey work off-farm, one quarter of these on a full-time basis. But, interestingly, 43% of those who work off-farm have a job in agriculture. Some 40% also volunteer and 18% are caring for children on a full-time or part-time basis. Well over half (58%) of respondents have a spouse who works full-time off-farm.
Between juggling family, farm work, off-farm employment and housework, lack of time is another major barrier to advancing the role women play both on-farm and in farm organisations.
Approximately 29% of survey participants expressed an interest in developing farm diversification activities in the next five years, more apparent among crofting respondents.
Key recommendations:
The cultural practice of passing on large farms intact to one son needs to be challenged (eg in the rest of Europe it is not possible to disinherit other children). Access to professional advice on succession planning, as well as awareness raising and support, should be offered to all members of farm families.The practice of only having one named tenant on a croft should be revisited to critically evaluate the gender implications. Conscious and unconscious bias needs to be addressed in farming organisations. A programme of measures including a 30% quota system for farm organisation boards and the introduction of a mechanism allowing women to progress from the SAYC to NFUS is suggested. If women-only networks and activities are supported, this should be through mainstream farming organisations and not as separate fringe events.More land should be made available for new entrants (eg on Crown Estate Scotland land) from large estates (of all ownership types and through a ‘matching service’ with older farmers).Next week we interview Joyce Campbell, co-chair of the Women in Agriculture task force.
The new women in agriculture task force, announced by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon at the Royal Highland show in June, met for the first time this week. Co-chaired by Cabinet secretary Fergus Ewing and farmer Joyce Campbell, the taskforce sets out to make sure that women are better represented in farming.
The single biggest barrier to women’s entry into agriculture is culture, according to the Women in Farming and the Agriculture Sector report commissioned by the Scottish Government. Passing on large farms to one son has been institutionalised culturally rather than legally, presenting a barrier for females that want to get into farming.
Despite this, women seem to play an important role in decision-making and accounting on farms. The fact that over half of respondents said they had a role in day-to-day decision-making, but nearly 70% are responsible for book-keeping, brings to mind the phrase about ‘talking to the man in charge, or the woman who knows what’s going on’. Just 15% of respondents were the primary decision-maker on their holding and 41% said their skills were being underutilised on the farm.
The wide range of data collected by the report will be the baseline that will inform policies made by the new taskforce to address the issue. Over 1,300 women from across Scotland participated in the research carried out by Newcastle University and the James Hutton Institute, between June 2016 and March this year.
It highlights the fact that women are under-represented among the elected leadership of farm organisations. For example, while over 1/3 of farm operators are women, the NFUS has no women as national office holders – despite the fact that around half of NFUS staff are female.
The majority of respondents wanted more women as leaders, but only 1/3 were interested in becoming more involved in taking up positions in farm organisations. Interestingly, the Scottish Association of Young Farmer Clubs (SAYFC) was the most common provider of leadership experience to women in Scottish agriculture.
Over half of women in the survey work off-farm, one quarter of these on a full-time basis. But, interestingly, 43% of those who work off-farm have a job in agriculture. Some 40% also volunteer and 18% are caring for children on a full-time or part-time basis. Well over half (58%) of respondents have a spouse who works full-time off-farm.
Between juggling family, farm work, off-farm employment and housework, lack of time is another major barrier to advancing the role women play both on-farm and in farm organisations.
Approximately 29% of survey participants expressed an interest in developing farm diversification activities in the next five years, more apparent among crofting respondents.
Key recommendations:
The cultural practice of passing on large farms intact to one son needs to be challenged (eg in the rest of Europe it is not possible to disinherit other children). Access to professional advice on succession planning, as well as awareness raising and support, should be offered to all members of farm families.The practice of only having one named tenant on a croft should be revisited to critically evaluate the gender implications. Conscious and unconscious bias needs to be addressed in farming organisations. A programme of measures including a 30% quota system for farm organisation boards and the introduction of a mechanism allowing women to progress from the SAYC to NFUS is suggested. If women-only networks and activities are supported, this should be through mainstream farming organisations and not as separate fringe events.More land should be made available for new entrants (eg on Crown Estate Scotland land) from large estates (of all ownership types and through a ‘matching service’ with older farmers).Next week we interview Joyce Campbell, co-chair of the Women in Agriculture task force.
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