Women play a huge role in food production worldwide. But despite their levels of farm workforce participation, they are poorly recognized in many countries, lacking access to land ownership and farm credit. In some societies, they are discouraged from operating mechanical equipment or learning new technologies. At a recent U of G conference sponsored by the Arrell Food Centre, Prof. Sharada Srinivasin and her team presented some of their research findings after interviewing 400 young farmers (male and female) in four countries — Canada, China, India and Indonesia. They found that young women farmers were often disadvantaged twice: by gender and by age.
“Invisible” women who farm struggling with identity
