Women in agriculture at the European Agricultural Forum

On 20 March 2024, during the European Agricultural Forum, we participated in a panel discussion on ‘Women in Agriculture’. The discussion was dedicated to analysing the current situation of women in rural areas, their role in agribusiness and agricultural businesses and how to support and promote women’s activities in agriculture.

As the participants pointed out, the main challenges for women working in agriculture are first of all to change the approach to the current systemic and legal solutions concerning agricultural and social policies in rural areas. Many of the existing regulations have not been changed for years and do not correspond to the economic and social realities of the Polish countryside and agriculture. One important area that needs to be addressed is social issues, including issues such as support for rural communities, especially women, in caring for children – the availability of crèches and kindergartens should be increased, but also the problem of day care for the elderly, who are members of multi-generational households in rural areas and whose care often falls to women. There is also a need for programmes to support and promote the role of women working in agriculture, so that their work is attractive, gives them satisfaction and the opportunity to realise their ambitions, and has an economic impact commensurate with their skills and commitment.

The discussion was participated by:

  • Bożena Bochenek – Attaché of the French Embassy, member of the Agro Woman Programme Council
  • Małgorzata Bojańczyk – Director of the Association for Sustainable Food and Agriculture in Poland, member of the Agro Woman Programme Council.
  • Ewa Kaniowicz – President of Bio-Gen
  • Monika Skowrońska-Ziomek – Member of the Board of the Women at the Centre Association.

The moderator was Beata Jakoniuk-Wojcieszak from the Television Academy, TVP.

Women in rural Poland are better educated than men. And the question we have to ask ourselves is how to keep them in the countryside so that they do not lose their skills. This also relates to the issue of work-life balance, because rural women do not have time for their own development or the development of their agricultural business, as they are still expected to take care of the home or children. So systemic issues are important, such as the provision of enough crèches or kindergartens. It is not just a question of women’s willingness or ambition to run their own farm, but also of women simply having the time to work. This means that we have to overcome the stereotype that women should ‘sit at home’ and men should work.

– pointed out Malgorzata Bojańczyk.

The panellists agreed that Polish women are ready, motivated and have the right knowledge to build their professional position in agriculture. However, they are often hindered by issues of stereotypes and cultural conditioning, which are still deeply rooted in rural communities. Therefore, measures such as campaigns to raise awareness of the attractiveness of women’s work in agriculture and to change attitudes towards farm succession are needed to enable young women to take over farms and make them attractive and profitable. During the debate it was also pointed out that a major challenge is the low availability of data, especially social research on women working in agriculture in Poland.

Let me give you an example from France, where more than 50% of students at technical and agricultural universities are women. Women also make up the majority of lecturers at such universities in France. Women have an interesting background and, as research on the agricultural sector in France shows, they are brave, they are not afraid of technology and innovation and, most importantly, they are not afraid of failure, which is very important for the whole innovation process.

– said Bożena Bochenek.

Despite the fact that women living in rural areas are statistically better educated than men, farms run by women in Poland are currently less than half the size of those run by men. Changing this situation will be difficult unless there is a much more equal representation of women and men in the institutions that make decisions about agriculture, including those that influence legislation, which in practice means increasing women’s participation in decisions about the direction of agricultural and rural development. Polish women are ready to help shape Polish agriculture, and a public debate on women’s equality should be held not only in agriculture, but in all sectors related to agribusiness and rural development.

Agribusiness is a very broad term; the agricultural sector also includes fertiliser or distribution companies, where women have already established themselves. This means that we do not need to imitate men. We have our qualities, such as strength, very good organisation of working time or working on many levels. The same applies to innovation – in our company, women are behind the development of product innovations. Our scientific base is our biotechnology team, which is currently 90% female. They are the ones who develop the whole technological idea, do the initial research and analysis of the products in the lab before they go into the field. So I think women are a powerful force and it is important that they believe in it themselves.

– Ewa Kaniowicz said.

Farming, especially in the case of livestock, is a 24-hour-a-day job, which very often means that women have no time for holidays, given their additional household responsibilities. Farmers are also under pressure from economic factors such as rising input costs and fluctuating crop prices. All of this has an impact not only on physical fatigue but also on mental wellbeing. The availability of psychological support in rural areas is very low, and this problem is exacerbated by the prevailing rural mentality – farmers are often reluctant to ask for help. As a result, this group is often affected by the problem of professional burnout.

In the open questions section to the panellists, the floor was taken by Adam Nowak, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, who listened to the discussion. He mentioned that,

It is important that we take a broad view of the role of women in agriculture and rural areas and that we work together on this, involving different rural communities. The role of women in agriculture is increasing and they now have a great opportunity to develop, especially with the introduction of modern tools such as precision agriculture or Agriculture 4.0, which is linked to the professionalisation of agriculture in Poland. Of course, it is necessary to improve access to public services in rural areas, which should be the same as in urban areas, as well as access to health care, preventive health care or support for seniors.

Agro Woman is an initiative of the Association for Sustainable Food and Agriculture in Poland to provide a platform for women to share their experiences and stories. It is also a space to discuss the role of sustainability in agriculture, innovation, management, and the challenges of the future.