New awards to celebrate women in agriculture

A new awards scheme designed to recognise and reward women in agriculture has been launched by Mark Allen Group, the owners of Farmers Weekly.

The first ever National Women In Agriculture Awards is open for nominations in 12 categories, covering a broad range of areas where women are making their mark.

From 1 November, businesses and individuals can submit their nominations, which will be judged by a panel of female food and farming leaders who know the industry inside out, including Tonia Antoniazzi MP, a prominent supporter of food and farming.

See also: Survey: How has farming changed for women in the past 10 years?

The awards ceremony will be held in May 2024 at a black tie event in the members’ dining room of the House of Commons.

This prestigious venue has been chosen to reflect and celebrate the valuable work women do in agriculture.

The judging panel is chaired by Chloe Ryan, a food and farming journalist and editor of Poultry Business magazine.

She said: “I am so excited to be launching a scheme specifically designed to celebrate the work women in agriculture do.

“At such a tumultuous time for agriculture and the wider economy, this scheme will shine a light on the brilliant women and businesses steering the industry through.”

The scheme is being sponsored by Nestlé UK and Ireland, HSBC, Morrisons, the Co-op and Noble Foods.

Any businesses keen to get involved and sponsor the event should contact Nadia Tweedie-Walker on nadia@lewisbusinessmedia.co.uk.

Level The Field campaign

Meanwhile, a new Farmers Weekly campaign – Level The Field – is seeking to engage people and organisations across our industry to bring about change that will make agriculture fairer, more equitable and more inviting for women. 

Have your say via our landmark survey which will measure the progress made for women in agriculture over the past 10 years.

The results of the survey will help inform the basis for the direction of the campaign.