Rural Support mark International Women's Day at Chestnutt Farm in Portrush

The event brought together a group of leading women (and men) in the industry to celebrate the day and to support the global effort to acknowledge the contribution of women and girls in our societies and the importance of embracing equity.

John Deere are headline sponsors for the overall global event so Rural Support teamed up with Stephen Moore Farm Machinery, the John Deere dealership in Northern Ireland, to help host and sponsor the event.

The morning was a great success and all who attended who had the opportunity to hear from Veronica Morris, Chief Executive: Rural Support; Alison Chestnutt, partner in Chestnutt Farms; Alison Moore, Stephen W Moore Farm Machinery; UFU Deputy President, William Irvine, and Dr Aoibeann Walsh, Head of Social Farming and Innovation at Rural Support.

Veronica Morris took the opportunity to thank all those who attended the event and to highlight the work that the industry does to promote equality and opportunity for all.

She said: “Women have always played a leading role within the family farm but now we are seeing many young women becoming Head of Holdings and very successfully taking the lead. We have large numbers of young women attending Greenmount and other agri-colleges, at the marts and agri-sector meetings and using social media to display their hard work and promote the sector – both the highs and the lows.

"The main message today is that we want to acknowledge those women and girls and show appreciation for what they, and others, have done and continue to do to drive equality across this sector. It is one that is leading the way and has so much to offer across the board.”

Alison Chestnutt, who hosted the day with her partner William, shared snippets from her own story and shared with the group about how she left her job in September 2020 to

come home to grow and expand their agri-business from a milk vending machine to producing Greek style yoghurt and opening a small honesty farm shop.

“I knew when I was moving into my 30’s that I wanted to have a career change and knew that was the time in 2020, and I haven’t looked back since,” she said.

"There have been ups and downs like in any business, but we just keep working at it and are getting there now. We also had some help from the Innovation Voucher scheme and were able to use the expertise at CAFRE in the development of our products and that was a great help.”

Speaking on behalf of John Deere and Stephen Moore Farm Machinery, who sponsored some of the event, Alison Moore commented: “John Deere very much place great importance on International Women’s Day and improving opportunities for women and girls across the globe. Marking the occasion here at Chestnutt Farm, along with Rural Support is a fantastic way in helping keep agriculture and women in agriculture part of the conversation.”

The group then had the opportunity to go on a farm walk lead by William Chestnutt where he explained the everyday running of the family farm with Alison detailing the workings of producing and packaging the milk for their vending machine, the making of their own Greek style yogurt and how they manage the farm honesty shop.

The walk brought the group back to the ever-popular Chestnutt Farm Milk vending machine and a lovely lunch sponsored by Stephen Moore Farm Machinery and a host of local businesses.

UFU Deputy president, William Irvine, who spoke at the event said: “It is great to see so many leading women from the agri-industry here today. Women and girls have always been an integral part of the sector and will continue to be as it develops.

"UFU are committed to supporting women in agriculture in several ways for example through the Women in Agriculture conference, breaking the ‘grass ceiling’ research and in our everyday work. Today’s event has been a great success and I extend my thanks to Rural Support and the businesses who have supported such an important day.”

Dr Aoibeann Walsh, Head of Social Farming and Innovation, who was the Lead Organiser and closed the event on behalf of Rural Support, commented: “International Women’s Day is focused on inclusion – not just today, but as standard practice. It exists to acknowledge the opportunities that weren’t available for the women who came before us and to safeguard the future of the women who are coming behind us.

" Farming women are making a contribution to an industry that is vital to Northern Ireland’s economy and to all of us as consumers. I’m very glad Rural Support has been able to mark the day by recognising and acknowledging this.”

Rural Support was established in 2002 and provides a range of services for farmers and farming families across Northern Ireland including a support line. It also provides face to face support through its mentoring programme, help with sourcing information and advice about a wide range of issues.

The support line (0800 138 1678) is available 9am-9pm, Monday to Friday (voicemail and options available at all other times. Freephone from all UK landlines and mobiles). Rural Support also co-ordinates the Social Farming Support Service for Northern Ireland, funded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).