Mers make their mark
“There are lots of businesses where you go where it’s very clear that someone who was the daughter is in charge and making the decisions. Often they’ve married someone who has no interest in farming so it’s them who’s at the top.”
She also sees a lot of women who are working outside the farm to support the business.
“We talk a lot about diversification, but there are a lot of farming families where the female role model in that family is going out doing another job, and it’s a very important part of bringing the income in.”
VICTORIA SHERVINGTON-JONES
This year’s NFU Cymru Wales Woman Farmer of the Year, Victoria runs a free-range egg business at her farm at St Brides, Newport.
When her father died of motor neurone disease seven years ago, she took over the running of the farm, which belongs to her parents. Her husband helps out but he has his own landscaping business. She has two daughters, aged four and three.
The farm has 39,500 laying hens, and she supplies eggs to Tesco and to 700 shops from Bridgend to Bristol.
She said: “I was born into farming. It may not be what I would have chosen to do but I love it now. It’s been a steep learning curve for me and my mum. We were always out on the farm, milking cows and whatever, but now we’re running it.
“I was the eldest of two and it was never a question that I wouldn’t come back and run the farm at some point.
“There was never a question that because I was a girl I wouldn’t be involved with it, and the same with my girls.”
She feels that women have a higher profile as farmers than used to be the case.
“There are a lot more stronger women in farming now… They’re definitely making more of an impression and being accepted in male roles. There’s nothing that us women can’t do now.”
She plans to keep growing the business, perhaps adding another laying shed and getting into more suppliers.
RACHEL MADELEY DAVIES
Rachel has a beef and sheep farm with her husband on 1,200 acres near Bala, in the Snowdonia National Park. They have 1,000 ewes and 40 suckler cows.
There’s no such thing as a typical day on a farm, but they’re often long days, especially in lambing season.
“It’s usually taking the children off to child minder or school, then it’s checking the lambing sheds. It’s long days and hard work – sometimes it feels like little reward, but we try to split the jobs.
“Usually what will happen is one of us will do an early shift and the other a later one. “
She also works from home as an agricultural consultant.
“It’s just the two of us so we’re both very hands-on. My husband works full-time on the farming, I work from home and plug the gaps,” she said.
“It’s very much a partnership. There used to be four people working on this farm 20 years ago and now it’s just the two of us.
“I probably fulfil some of the traditional roles still, like cooking meals, but that’s through choice, not because I feel I have to do. I see this as any other job. Something I feel strongly about is that we play an equal role.”
She added: “I’m fortunate I can work as well, so I can plan my diary around the farm diary. I’m interested in the strategic, policy side of farming as well, not just the day-to-day, and I’m involved in that as well.
“The strategic side of our business, where we invest, is always a joint decision. It has to be, it’s my livelihood as well as his and two brains are usually better than one.”
KATH SHAW
Kath runs a deer farm near Builth Wells which she owns with her mother. The farm runs to 80 acres and they have a breeding herd of 45 hinds.
She also works part-time administration for the FUW.
She was born just outside London, where her parents worked as a teacher and a telecommunications engineer. She worked in the deer industry after taking a HND in agriculture and then decided to set up the farm with her parents more than 15 years ago.
“It’s been a learning curve. I won’t say there haven’t been mistakes, but we’re learning as we go along. People have been very welcoming. Once you build up that personal relationship, they’re more willing to help.
“It’s a niche market but it’s growing. There are about 350 deer farms in the country but a lot of them have a local market or they have a small meat round.”
They sell all their deer to the Welsh Venison Centre in Bwlch, between Brecon and Crickhowell.
“There’s only a certain season you can sell in when they’re ready. You’re not subject to market fluctuations but you are subject to the whims of consumers.”
She thinks mechanisation has made it easier for women in farming. “I don’t consider myself any weaker or stronger or better, it’s more attitude,” she said.
“We went to a local machinery show when we first moved here and no-one spoke to us because they assumed we’d come with a man. But once you build up relationships with the local suppliers, they accept you for who you are.
“It’s more the older generation. The people my age or younger are quite accepting – they’ve grown up seeing their parents taking a more active role.” in