First study into role of women on farms
There is a global perception about farming that where there is a farm, there is a farmer and that farmer is a man. However, in the European context this is not the case. Instead, most farming is done within the context of family farms. Women make up 37% of the total workforce on European farms and account for 30% on Irish farms. Many women - in Europe, in Ireland, in Wicklow - living on farms work full or part-time in the farm business, in addition many hold down jobs off farm also. The reality is that up until now we did not have a lot of information about the role of women in agriculture in our county, or indeed at national level.
Therefore Wicklow Rural Partnership, in conjunction with the IFA Farm Families Committee, Teagasc, Macra na Feirme and the County Development Board, is delighted to be launching the first ever countywide study into the multiple roles undertaken by women on Wicklow farms.
