For the new chair of the Women in Agriculture Stakeholders Group (WASG), Mona O’Donoghue Concannon, herd number obstacles have been a “nightmare”.
The difficulties women face in trying to secure a herd number is one of a range of issues she will be highlighting in her new role. Her personal experience mirrors that of many women around the country.
“12 years later, I am still not on it because I don’t have the Green Cert. I did a degree in business management but didn’t have time to do the Green Cert as I am also a full-time carer for my brother,” Mona told Agriland.
“My degree is not enough. It’s one of the issues we are fighting for in a bid for more inclusiveness for women on farms.”
Growing up on a suckler farm in Kinvara, Co. Galway, Mona was involved in all aspects of farm life although her brother took over the family farm.
“I always helped my dad. He also grew potatoes and we all helped with that – boys or girls – it didn’t make a difference. The neighbours also treated everyone the same; there was never a divide,” the WASG chair said.
“It was only in later life that I noticed how women in farming were treated differently. When I started farming with my husband, Shay, I found huge inequalities. Whereas as a child, I had always been brought to the mart, I then found I was often the only woman at the mart,” she added.
Herd numbers and other obstacles
Working on the family dairy, beef and suckler farm in Tuam, alongside Shay, her brother Mark who has a brain injury and for whom she is a carer, and her 18-year-old daughter, Ella who is doing her Leaving Cert this year, Mona represents the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association (ICSA) in the WSAG.
“We are in the process of setting up a co-op structure and then we are going to start investigating specific needs of women in agriculture,” she said.
“Following on from the dialogue at the recent Women in Agriculture conference in Portlaoise, we have identified a lot of areas to be followed up on.”
As well as herd numbers, other issues of concern include encouraging farm partnerships and farm ownerships; training; farm finances and pensions, according to Mona.
“A lot of women have been working on farms all their lives but they are not entitled to pensions because they didn’t have PRSI contributions,” Mona said.
Just over 13,000 women are ‘officially’ farming and in receipt of farm payments in Ireland, yet Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures show 70,000 women work on farms every day.
Change is coming about slowly, according to the Galway farmer. “With education, a lot of young farmers who have daughters coming up are more open, but there is still a huge problem – farmers are not handing on farmers to their daughters,” she said.
“We have spoken with the agriculture colleges and they have told us that girls generally do agricultural science or business because they know that their brothers will get the farm.
“We are looking at funding ways to encourage people to put farms in joint names and to have a viable income for family farms. There are so many issues facing us through climate change, we don’t want to be adding to the problems,” she continued.
While a lot remains to be done, she is positive about agriculture minister Charlie McConalogue’s interaction.
“For the first time ever, a Minister for Agriculture has been willing to sit down and chat with us. I met him at the ICSA AGM on Thursday and he is very willing to tackle the inequalities,” Mona said.
“We want to liaise with women – and men – in farming to take on their views. We would encourage more people to get behind us. Our biggest message is that we don’t want any woman to feel left behind and isolated. Our door is always open,” Mona continued.
The new chair of the independent voluntary body expressed thanks to all the organisations involved for putting a representative forward and leaving politics outside the door.
“It is not often that you get all organisations singing from the same hymn sheet,” she said.