Women in Agriculture

Women in Agriculture

David Sparks Ph.D.
David Sparks Ph.D.

In a recently posted blog, Jo Lynne Seufer, Risk Management Specialist with the USDA/Risk Management Agency's Spokane Regional Office stated that she was so excited to see the Topeka Regional Office's October blog sharing information about Women in Agriculture!!! Proving once again, the growth of this demographic in our country's food production is strong!!

I recently had the pleasure of attending and presenting on the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection program at a "She Grows Idaho" women in agriculture workshop on October 18 in Twin Falls, Idaho. I am still energized today... these women inspire me!

Prior to the workshop, I met with the two co-founders, Karma Metzler Fitzgerald and Dr. Alison Hurwitch. Established in October of 2016, I learned they are not only directly involved in agriculture, they are key advocates to ensuring women, men---all farmers and professionals in food production excel well into the future. We could have talked for hours.

Alison, a dairy veterinarian shared she is seeing a growing number of women farmers in southern Idaho and Karma, a writer and agriculture advocate, shared her daughter is enrolled in Washington State University's Dairy Sciences program and women dominate the number of enrollees in our regional land grant universities (University of Idaho, Oregon State University, Washington State University).

This group of women are empowering each other and all those-they-meet. They are working together to sustain a resilient agriculture life style; create awareness of the ever-growing agricultural employment opportunities outside every backdoor; educate our communities about where food comes from; and gather monthly to network and learn of new resources available (including USDA Risk Management Agency insurance programs).

Several times a year, the group will include an educational tour of a local agricultural-based business in southern Idaho. On the 18th, we visited Glanbia Cheese Marketplace in downtown Twin Falls. Great opportunity! Glanbia has a contract with over 100 dairies, including some of the She Grows Idaho members!

Our sister agency, National Agricultural Statistics Service is busy gearing up to send out the 2017 Census of Agriculture Surveys in December. Our nation's farmers, fisheries and foresters will have until February 2018 to return their completed surveys. I cannot wait to see the results of the women in agriculture counts jump even higher as they did in the previous census 2012 (from 2008).

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