The International Year of the Woman Farmer and What It Means on Our Farm

The United Nations declared 2026 the International Year of the Woman Farmer. The stated purpose is to raise awareness of the role women play in agrifood systems and to encourage action around the barriers many women farmers still face, including access to land, finance, services, training, and leadership.

That is worth recognizing.

Around here, I do not need a UN declaration to know women are central to farming. I see it every day. But I do think a year like this creates a good reason to slow down and say plainly what is often overlooked: many farms, including ours, do not function without the daily work, judgment, stamina, and consistency of women.

For us, that means Amy.

Amy is not helping on the farm. She is farming.

There is a way people sometimes talk about women on farms that misses the point. They describe them as if they are nearby, supportive, or assisting. That is not an honest description of what happens on many real farms.

Amy is not standing off to the side while the farm happens around her.

She is in it.

She moves birds. She handles crates. She pays attention to the details that have to be right. She does work that is physical, repetitive, necessary, and often unseen by anyone who only encounters the final product in a package or on a plate.

That is farming.

And that matters because the public idea of a farmer is still often narrower than reality. The International Year of the Woman Farmer exists in part because women’s contributions to agriculture are often undercounted, under-recognized, and under-supported even though they are central to food production worldwide.

What the International Year of the Woman Farmer is meant to highlight

The point of the Year is not symbolism alone.

According to the FAO and the UN resolution behind it, the Year is meant to draw attention to the role of women across agrifood systems and to the real constraints many women farmers face, especially around land tenure, financial and technical resources, education, and access to services. It is also meant to encourage policies and investment that actually strengthen women’s position in agriculture.

That matters globally, but it also matters locally.

Because it is easy for the conversation to become abstract. “Women in agriculture” can turn into a slogan. But on a real farm, it is not abstract at all. It is feed, crates, gates, birds, calves, records, timing, judgment, and endurance. It is daily work. It is responsibility.

That is why I think the Year is useful when it pulls the discussion back toward actual farms and actual women doing actual work.

What this looks like at Tyner Pond Farm

On our farm, the work is not divided into glamorous and unglamorous parts. It is just work that needs to be done right.

When we move young birds onto pasture, somebody has to be there to handle them carefully and efficiently. Somebody has to stay with the details. Somebody has to keep the system moving.

That is what these photos show.

They do not show a ceremony. They do not show a posed tribute. They show a woman working in a pasture-based poultry system, doing the kind of job that keeps a farm functioning.

I think that is the right way to talk about the International Year of the Woman Farmer.

Not as a branding exercise. Not as a sentimental side note. But as an honest acknowledgment that women have always been part of the backbone of real farms.

Why this matters to the food

On our farm, we care a great deal about how food is raised.

We care about pasture. We care about daily movement. We care about sunlight, clean air, and living conditions that support animal health without leaning on the industrial crutches that have become normal elsewhere. We care about raising food in a way that makes biological sense.

None of that happens by accident.

It happens because people do the work, and in our case Amy is part of that work every day.

So when I look at a photo of her moving birds on pasture, I do not just see a good image. I see one more reminder that food quality is tied to people as much as systems. It is tied to whether somebody is willing to be there, pay attention, and do the job right.

That includes women, and it always has.

The larger point

I do not think the right response to the International Year of the Woman Farmer is to act surprised that women farm.

The better response is to speak more honestly about what farming has always required and who has always been doing it.

Women have long carried real responsibility on farms, even when they were not the ones most visibly credited for it. The Year is a chance to correct that, at least a little, by saying the obvious out loud.

Farming is not only male work.

It never was.

And if you want to understand a farm, look closely at who keeps it moving day after day. On many farms, including ours, you will find a woman doing work without which the place would not function.

Why I wanted to say this publicly

I wanted to write this because I think gratitude should be specific.

Amy is part of what makes Tyner Pond Farm what it is. Not in theory. Not in spirit only. In practice.

That deserves to be said clearly.

So if 2026 is the International Year of the Woman Farmer, then I am glad to use the occasion to recognize her and to say that on our farm this is not ceremonial language. It is a description of reality.

She is a farmer.

And I am grateful for her.

FAQ

What is the International Year of the Woman Farmer?

The United Nations declared 2026 the International Year of the Woman Farmer. The purpose is to raise awareness of women’s role in agrifood systems and encourage action around barriers women farmers face, including access to land, finance, services, and education.

Why did the UN create the International Year of the Woman Farmer?

The Year was created to recognize women’s contributions to agriculture and food systems and to encourage governments, institutions, and communities to address the gaps that still limit many women farmers.

Is 2026 officially the International Year of the Woman Farmer?

Yes. The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring 2026 the International Year of the Woman Farmer.

What does the International Year of the Woman Farmer mean for small farms?

For farms like ours, it is a good reason to recognize something that is already true: women are doing real farm work every day, and many farms depend on that work even when it is not publicly emphasized.

What role do women play on farms like Tyner Pond Farm?

On our farm, women are part of the daily physical and management work that keeps the place running. That includes handling livestock, moving birds, managing details, and doing the steady work behind the food we raise.

Why does this matter to customers?

It matters because food quality is tied to the people doing the work. A farm is not just land and animals. It is people making decisions and carrying out the daily tasks that shape the final product.