Women in Food & Agriculture 2019 Survey Results

In partnership with

Are women fairly represented in the food and agriculture industry? What are the barriers holding women back and what can the industry do to further the fight for equality?

WFA Survey ResultsAs part of the 2019 Women in Food & Agriculture Summit, AgriBriefing partnered with Alltech to conduct an industry survey. We had a fantastic response, with more than 2,500 respondents from across the supply chain, from every corner of the world.

The challenges associated with the ever-increasing global population have made it more important than ever for the agrifood industry to be able to perform at its full potential. Inclusion and diversity in the workforce are essential to shaping a sustainable future. The survey was launched to gather real-world insights into the professional landscape for women in agriculture. To chart the course forward, we must first understand our starting point.

Who took part?Women across the entire food supply chain, from the farm to the lab, were invited to take part in the survey. To gather insights from all perspectives, we invited men to take part as well. The companies represented in this survey cover the whole industry ranging from farmers (20% of respondents) to employees of large agrifood businesses with more than 3,000 employees (25% of respondents).

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Workplace perceptions

Men Women

Women

• Across all responses, the variance in male and female responses demonstrate a difference in perceptions and experiences

• One-in-four women disagreed with the statement ‘women are well-represented in the leadership of my organization’, whereas only one-in-10 men disagreed

• Twice as many young women disagree with this statement (24% of 18-34-year-olds vs. 12% of those aged 55-plus)

• When asked if women were respected in their organization, 59% of men strongly agreed vs. 32% of women

• While women across all sectors indicated they had been mistaken for someone at a lower level, it was more frequently reported by women in ag-tech, the least reported in aquaculture and retail

‘Women are well-represented in the leadership of my organization’

agreed with this statement

agreed with this statement

agreed with this statement

‘Women are well-represented in my organization’

‘Women are well-represented in the agri-food industry’

65%of men

76%of men

59%of men

50%of women

65%of women

43%of women

Men

• 41% of men strongly agreed women were fairly compensated compared to 22% of women

• 49% of women have been mistaken for someone at a lower level compared to 27% of males

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‘Are women well-represented in the leadership of your organization?’

• 75% of men and women in smaller companies were likely to say ‘women are well-represented in the leadership of my organization’ vs. only six-in-10 (61%) of those in medium and large companies

• Those in Asia were most likely to report they felt women were well-represented in leadership (83%), followed by Europe (67%), Africa (66%) and the Americas (65%), while only half (54%) of those in Oceania agreed

• Seven-in-10 (70%) working in food and other industries agreed with the statement, while only two-in-three (64%) of those working in retail did

‘Does your organization offer flexible working hours?’

• Older respondents were more likely to have access to flexible working hours with 70% of those aged 55-plus and 63% of those 35-54 indicating they had flexibility, compared to just over half (57%) of those aged 18-34

• Respondents in Europe and Oceania were were more likely to have flexible working hours (70%), while those in Asia were least likely

• Across sectors, those working in ag-tech were most likely to have flexible work hours (67%)

• Small companies (68%) were notably more likely to offer flexibility in working hours than medium and large organizations (59% for both)

Harassment in the workplace

• There was a drastic difference between men and women when it comes to witnessing or experiencing sexist comments (48% compared to 18%)

• Fewer than one-in-10 (9%) of men said they had witnessed or experienced verbal sexual harassment in the workplace, while more than one-in-four (27%) women had

• Younger respondents were more likely to say they had witnessed verbal sexual harassment, with 25% of those aged 18-34 saying they had, vs. one-in-five of those 35-54 and 55-plus

• When looking at women only, the survey showed two out of every five women had witnessed or been the target of a sexist comment, and one-in-five suffered a verbal sexual harassment

• 8% reported they had experienced or witnessed physical sexual harassment – equivalent to one in every 12 women working in food and agriculture

‘How many hours a week do you work?’

• 61% of men and women in small companies reported working more than 40 hours, compared to more than three-in-five (64%) of those in medium sized companies and three-quarters (75%) of those in large ones

• There was only limited variety between sectors: just under three-in-five (59%) of workers in ag-tech reported working 40-plus hours a week, compared to seven-in-10 (71%) of those working with pets; all livestock industries were similar, with approaching seven-in-10 of respondents saying they worked 40-plus hours a week

• 18-34-year-olds (60%) were the least likely to work more than 40 hours a week, compared to 34-54-year-olds (67%) and those aged 55-plus (65%)

Workplace culture

Have you ever been witness to or the target of: AGE RANGE Total 18-34 35-54 55-plus A sexist comment? 39% 35% 32% 26% Verbal sexual harassment? 22% 20% 17% 15% Physical sexual harassment? 8% 6% 7% 6%

• Respondents in Asia (74%) were more likely to respond that they had not witnessed or been the target of sexist comments than others; Europe (53%) and the Americas (53%) were near the global average, while Oceania was far lower (31%)

• Respondents from Oceania were by far the most likely to report they had witnessed verbal sexual harassment, with two-in-five (40%) saying they had; this was followed by the Americas (26%), just ahead of Africa (25%)

• In contrast, fewer than one-in-five (17%) of European respondents and barely one-in-10 (13%) of Asian respondents said they had seen or experienced sexual harassment

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BarriersWe asked participants to select some of the biggest barriers they face in progressing their career in food and agriculture.

Equal pay

• 68% of women said equal pay was a barrier

• Only 4% of men strongly agreed equal pay is a barrier, versus 19% of women

• Overall, more than half of all women agreed equal pay was an issue, compared to one-third of men

Strong network

• 65% of women said a lack of a strong personal network was a significant barrier

• 24% of men disagreed with this statement, compared to only 14% of women

• 54% of women working in food agreed a lack of a strong network was holding them back; women in dairy and trading felt it the least (43%)

Mentors

• 75% of women said lack of mentors was a significant barrier

• When working in ag-tech cited a lack of mentors as a barrier to progression more frequently than most (63%)

• Women working in trading indicated this the least, but still over half saw lack of mentor ship as a significant barrier

Women

Women

Women

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The futureFor the most part, the survey shows that the industry is making great progress in closing the gender gap and employees are feeling positive about the future. 58% feel that women are well-represented in the industry and 79% agree that their organization is becoming more inclusive.

One point of interest is that only 39% of women knew of their company’s diversity and inclusion policy and that a further 40% were not aware if one existed.

With a vast majority, 97%, of women indicating their confidence in their ability to positively impact the future of our industry, organizations have an opportunity to create a path that leads to better inclusion today and empowers the leaders of tomorrow.

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Dr Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech:

If you would like more information about the results, please contact wfa@agribriefing.com

The future of our planet and the way we produce our food are inextricably intertwined. We need everyone involved to create the innovations required to feed a growing planet

in an increasingly sustainable manner and, at the same time, combat the barrage of misinformation which seems to be on the rise. Inclusion strengthens our industry

and global community, increases our level of creativity and helps us all achieve our shared goals. The Women in Food and Agriculture survey revealed a great deal about where the agri-food sector stands on gender diversity and illuminated where we need to collaborate to affect positive change. There are challenges to overcome, yet there

are several steps organizations can start to take and proven examples of how to bring about success. Now is the time to unify and affect change on the overall industry.

We must continue to collaborate and create an environment for positive, productive conversations. Insights from the WFA survey are only the beginning.

‘My organization is becoming more inclusive’ ‘The industry is becoming more inclusive’

I n the 1970s, Alltech founder Dr Pearse Lyons immigrated to the United States with a dream: to sustain our planet and all things living on it. An Irish scientist, he saw an opportunity to apply his yeast fermentation expertise to animal nutrition challenges.

His dream became a reality when he founded Alltech in 1980 with just $10,000. Today, more than 5,000 team members in over 120 countries share the passionate spirit of innovation, curiosity and purpose, on which Alltech was founded.

Led by Dr Mark Lyons and Deirdre Lyons, Alltech remains at the forefront of scientific discovery to deliver smarter, more sustainable solutions for agriculture.

Alltech firmly believes agriculture has the greatest potential to shape the future of our planet.

The team is united by its shared vision for a Planet of Plenty™, a world in which we produce enough safe, nutritious food for all, while caring for our animals, and sustaining our land, air and water for future generations. Human ingenuity from a diverse and inclu-sive workforce is among the most valuable of our natural resources.

Planet of Plenty™ is a vision of promise, possibility and positivity for the future. A world of abundance is achievable, but it will take all of us working together.

“The challenges within our food supply chain are varied and include food security, improper nutrition and food waste. They can be overcome, but will require our collaboration on education, innovation and inclusion. Since the early days of history, women have been caretakers of the land, tending farms and gardens to help feed their families. Today, we must clear a path within our industry so that they may help feed the world.”

DEIRDRE LYONS CO-FOUNDER OF ALLTECH

W O R K I N G T O G E T H E R F O R AW O R K I N G T O G E T H E R F O R A

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I think the degree of a nation’s civilization may be measured by the degree of enlightenment of its women.

– Helen Keller

INCLUSION FEEDS THE WORLD

PlanetofPlenty.comAlltech.com