Less than 1% of farms in the country have a woman registered as an official partner according to figures obtained by the Women in Agriculture Stakeholders Group (WASG).

Just 1,258 farms out of 137,000 in the country have at least one female partner officially registered, the group found.

Chair of the WASG Hannah Quinn-Mulligan said that the system has let down a generation of women working on farms.

“CSO figures clearly show that 70,000 women work on farms every day and yet only 1,258 women are registered on an official partnership.

The last few weeks have highlighted failings across society when it comes to valuing women for their individual worth

“We hope that the 60% TAMS grant for women up to 66 years of age will help to redress the situation for that generation of women who have spent their lives working on farms without the acknowledgment of the contribution to the family farm,” Quinn-Mulligan said.

She said: “The last few weeks have highlighted failings across society when it comes to valuing women for their individual worth,” adding that the group will continue to work to ensure that this does not happen on its watch.

She said that while the Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue has taken on board the groups proposed CAP measures, there is still “significant work to be done to address inclusivity and Irish agriculture has the opportunity to be a shining example in society.”

IFA support

IFA representative for the group Alice Doyle said: “We fully support the inclusion of women in partnerships and encourage more women to enter into partnerships.”

Doyle added that the situation is different when it comes to Succession Farm Partnerships, which provides a tax credit to incentivise the transfer of land to young farmers.

Other figures obtained from the group show that 22 out of the 66 succession partnerships have at least one female member, which the group says highlights that the mindset for transferring land to women is gradually changing and moving in the right direction where women are considered an equal successor to men.

Hopeful

ICMSA representative Vanessa Kiely O’Connor also said: “I must admit to be taken aback by the current figure of less than 1% of women in a registered partnership.

“On a positive note, I would be hopeful that this will change in the very near future, it is absolutely wonderful to see the succession partnership figures of (42%), as it shows a change to the old traditional mindset.”

As the deadline for registering official farm partnerships approaches on 11 February, the WASG is urging farmers and their families to consider the benefits of recognising the contribution that women play on farms and adding them to a farm partnership.

A link to farm partnership information on the Department of Agriculture website can be found here.