Published in Spring 2022
By: Teagan Moran, Small Farms Program, Oregon State University with excerpts from Evaluation Report by Vernita Ediger
I have had the joy and honor of helping to facilitate the Willamette Women’s Farm Network for the past three years, prior to this role I was connected as a farmer member. This is a regional network of women and femme identified farmers who are actively farming in Linn, Lane, and Benton Counties. The network was started in 2007 by a small group of women farmers who saw a need to share information and support one another in the male dominated agricultural field. They joined forces with OSU Extension Small Farms faculty, Melissa Fery, and started to meet regularly. One of those founding women shared:
“A group of women all moved to Oregon at about the same time to farm. I came to the network looking for experienced farmers. What I got was a group of other women who were going through the same process as I was.”
The network has grown from a handful of beginner farmers to 227 women who are now currently connected via an email listserv and directory. Fifteen years later, those beginner farmers are now some of the experienced farmers offering advice. While most in the network sell direct to consumer, they span all market channels, range in age from 18 - 80, range in scale from 1 - 100+ acres and have anywhere from 0 - 50 years of farming experience. The group gets
together to further knowledge of farm and ranch related issues both in the market place and in agricultural practices. We are working together to enhance economic self-sufficiency through shared experience, resources, and visions of how farm work will impact ourselves and our community. We aim to provide each member a safe, supportive environment, and opportunity to learn practices regarding farming/ranching that promotes responsibility, profitability, and conservation of the land.
My role as a facilitator is to help monitor the email listserv, add new members, share relevant resources and respond to network requests to bring members together to learn and share. Over the past 15 years this group has held farm tours, workshops, retreats, made bulk purchases, shared equipment, and built a community of support. Most the women who started the group are still involved, many others have come and gone as their farming path has evolved, and we welcome new members regularly. As the network has grown, so has the needs of its members and ways in which people connect through it. With over 200 members we know the needs are diverse.
In 2021 it was time to evaluate the network again and to understand how/if it was benefiting members. There are more women in farming and ranching in Oregon than ever before. There has been a noticeable shift in the farming community in the past 15 years and women are no longer always assumed to be the farmer’s wife/daughter/sister. With this noticeable shift we needed to ask: Do women in agriculture still need a dedicated space to support one another? After an extensive evaluation including a survey and focus groups, the answer is a very confident and loud YES. While more women are owning and operating farm businesses, entering into farming, and holding managerial roles on farms, the agricultural profession and associated businesses are still male dominated. During the evaluation women shared experiences of not being invited to farming conversations with male colleagues or neighbors,
and of being side-lined when a man was around. This included a woman farm owner being ignored while a male farmhand was nearby at a farm store. Women are still asked where their husbands are when making purchases or interacting with other Ag businesses.
Women in the network shared the importance of feeling connected to other women in agriculture and the need to have a close-knit set of connections to which they belonged. Many of these women described experiences of being “left out” or “excluded” by male acquaintances in agriculture who more naturally communicate and share resources with each other (lessons learned, equipment, etc.).
Women reported that the network had benefited them by providing:
• Social connections with other women farmers,
• Increased access learning opportunities and information,
• Increased awareness of and access to farm-related resources,
• Opportunities to see other farms and learn hands-on, and
• Increased access to business opportunities.
We learned that the benefits listed above were harder to access or didn’t feel as comfortable in mixed gender settings. Farming can be a lonely and demanding business and while farmers in the network often enjoy their own company, they also feel a need for companionship and connection, specifically with like minded women.
“My experience is that farming is really isolating, which I love. But I also want to socialize with people who are somewhat similar or in some similar realm. My realm of socializing is to be social but (social while) focused on farming.”
Network participants connect with other women who share a common lifestyle, values, and limitations on time availability. This allows them to feel comfortable reconnecting with people after months of ‘radio silence’ due to overwhelming farm schedules during the growing season.
“When your friends who aren’t farmers don’t hear from you for 4 months, they think you don’t want to be connected. Harvest is a busy time here and (non-farmers) don’t get that but people here understand that.”
Women in the network report cultivating a sense of community and belonging that they are unable to elsewhere. Several women personally shared how this network provided the foundational and emotional support they needed at critical moments to be able to continue or remain in farming.
“This network gave me a ton of support for going to Farmers Market for the first time. They supported me every way: telling me how to do it, what tent to buy, I even ended up hiring help through this network and help that was specifically good at doing marketing and Farmers Markets. The social aspect of (the network) and the community to start a business and take a business to a new level, is what I have found.”
Another example of emotional support was described by one woman who shared the following:
“I started my business and my farm about 4 years ago. So, I was about 2 years in at that point. I was pretty much at the breaking point. I was questing everything: ‘Can I do it? Is this going to break me?’ Then (the retreat through the network) came up and it was everything I needed. It was a way for me to bring my product and share it with other people who really appreciate it. It was, in a way, an ego boost. There were sessions about physical things like exercise programs and how to protect your back. That was super helpful: The reminder to (take care of yourself). There was a really powerful venting session—or sharing session. That was a reality check to hear other people were
having similar things and its part of the deal (of farming). It was a real lifesaver and it totally gave me the boost in many areas I needed… The retreat covered very important topics on how we can support each other.”
This network provides a space for women to ask what they need to ask without concern of judgment. Whether that be a question to the email listserv or at a farm tour. They reported feeling safe to ask questions in a way they reported not feeling in mixed gender situations. In addition, they had confidence in the information they were getting, whether that be from the network facilitator or others in the network. The network itself became a trusted source of
information. This saved members time and worry as they were able to benefit from the research and experience of other women they knew and trusted.
“There are a lot of FB groups where you can throw your questions out—but I don’t know who I’m hearing from when I get the answer back. I can trust the response in this group...”
The network has helped to support farm businesses as a space for women to share their experience getting loans and grants. This not only introduced resources to others but demystified some of the daunting application processes.
“Part of the vision for the group was to address the business side of farming as well as the practical farming side. It’s a big deal—and it’s interesting to see people getting loans and money.”
“The connections are not just to the group—but to grants and classes. That’s how I find out about everything.”
The evaluation confirmed that engagement in the network had positive increases for all
indicators assessed:
• Farm-related knowledge & skills
• Application of knowledge and skills to on-farm practices and ag-businesses
• Increase in connections with each other
• Increase in connections to resources
• Improved attitude and outlook about their future in farming
• Expansion of their farming businesses and/or launching new ag-related ventures
As the network has grown, so has the diversity of needs, farming practices, and businesses. The network is now in an exciting time where the group is figuring out how to segment itself into focused learning/themed groups. They also want to think about how to create a more established mentorship program, identifying those who are available to mentor or those seeking mentorship. This group is constantly evolving and has the power and ability to organize however they want. I aim to provide the tools and organizational support necessary to implement their goals. Since this network’s inception, two other Small Farms Program Women Farm networks have formed both in the North Willamette Valley and in Southern Oregon. You can visit the Small Farms Program Women Farmer Network Webpage here: https://smallfarms.oregonstate.edu/smallfarms/osu-women-farmer-networks. Current OSU Small Farms Faculty, Melissa Fery and Maud Powell, took what they learned from the establishment of these networks and published a guide to assist others in this process; Creating Farmer Networks A Toolkit for Promoting Vibrant Farm Communities. This toolkit provides information and resources needed to create a successful farmer network. It is intended for farmers, extension agents, community organizers, and other agricultural professionals. https://www.sare.org/wp-content/uploads/pnw638.pdf.