Gender Roles in Agriculture

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    In Morocco, we have visited several different farms where they produce a wide variety of crops. The Moroccans are still on the more traditional side of agriculture pertaining to gender. They have the males in fields growing and harvesting their crops while the women are involved with postharvest processing and packing. On our visit to Iberry, we saw the whole production line of blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. On their farm, they have a couple of men who harvest their products. I was expecting there to be more workers who were the ones doing the picking based on what I have seen in the United States. After the farm, we toured the Iberry processing and packing plant where there were mostly women working in there. The cultural norms for agriculture in Morocco are very traditional meaning that the males are doing the laborious jobs in the fields while women are working the processing side of the operation. Around 52% of women in Morocco are employed in the agricultural sector. Since 2010, female employment in agriculture has been decreasing in Morocco.

Over the last few years, women in the United States have taken a more prominent role in agriculture and agribusiness. Women in the U.S. have been pursuing more agricultural degrees than ever which is great for agriculture. In the United States, women are involved at every stage in agriculture which is very different from Morocco. The Department of Agriculture revealed that 36% of women are farmers and that 56% of farms have a least one female worker in the United States. There are more women in the agricultural workforce in the United States today than there ever have been.


References

Shearing, C. (2019, May 1). Women count in agriculture. American Farm Bureau Federation. https://www.fb.org/focus-on-agriculture/women-count-in-agriculture#:~:text=The%20Agriculture%20Department’s%20just%2Dunveiled,acres%20and%20value%20of%20production.



Comments

  1. Victoria GossJune 5, 2023 at 3:20 PM

    I noticed their more traditional roles in agriculture as well throughout this trip.
    When we were at the avocado farm, I asked who they primarily hire to harvest the avocados and they said men since they were able to climb into trees easier. I think it is interesting to compare women's roles in Moroccan agriculture vs the U.S. because as you stated, women take a much more prominent role in our agricultural processes. I do think these women are slowly becoming a more crucial part of Moroccan agriculture and agrotourism through their work in the coops. This gives them a great opportunity to make a small livelihood while having more ideal working conditions.

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