Women in Agriculture
Celebrating the women shaping the future of farming
The Women in Agriculture campaign celebrates the women transforming farming around the world while shining a light on the challenges they continue to face. Through stories, interviews, and inspiring initiatives, the campaign amplifies women’s voices, showcases positive change, and builds a global community committed to a more inclusive agricultural sector.
Women play a vital role in agriculture by growing food, managing farms, leading businesses, driving innovation, supporting rural communities, and advancing more sustainable food systems. Despite these contributions, women continue to face barriers – unequal access to land, financing, technology, education, leadership opportunities, and recognition.
Research consistently shows that empowering women farmers leads to higher productivity, stronger rural economies, greater food security, and more resilient agricultural systems. Supporting women in agriculture is not only a matter of equality but also a critical step towards securing the future of farming.
Stories from across the sector
Discover the inspiring women and organizations in the Agraya community helping to shape the future of agriculture.
Kimberly Ramirez Guerrero
Based in Costa Rica, Kimberly is a certification and laboratory manager passionate about supporting pineapple producers exporting mainly to European markets. In this interview, Kimberly highlights that: “I believe that the field belongs to everyone and we increasingly need stronger hands, more diverse voices, and more committed minds. I think women have a lot of that.”
As Certification and Laboratory Manager at Nico Verde S.A., a pineapple company exporting mainly to Europe, Kimberly oversees two very different sides of the business. One, keeping certification standards on track for European markets. Second, steering the lab’s search for plant-based active compounds, building toward a circular economy. Looking back at a field long dominated by men, she sees real innovation arriving with more women stepping into it.
Fressia López
Fressia’s story reminds us that, for decades, women’s contributions to this sector have been overlooked, despite their essential role in sustaining rural communities. This narrative is now changing, and women are increasingly leading innovation in agriculture, paving the way toward a more inclusive future.
A quality analyst at a tuber-processing plant, Fressia grew up in a rural part of Costa Rica where cassava, plantain, banana, and pineapple are grown, looking up to the farmers around her from an early age. She is candid that the sector was long male-dominated and women’s work went unseen, but she points to the growing strength of women’s associations across Costa Rica, and her own experience working alongside them, as real signs of change.
Sriwan Buaban
Owner of Red Rocket Farm in Thailand, in this interview, Sriwan Buaban shares how learning from her parents shaped her path in agriculture, while also reflecting on the great role women can play in shaping the future of the sector.
Owner of Red Rocket Farm. Sriwan learned by watching her parents work the land and has since paired that traditional knowledge with new technology. She is confident women will shape agriculture’s next generation, thanks to their organizational skills and attention to detail. Her advice to anyone starting in farming out is simple: passion first, then the knowledge to manage and monitor a farm properly, and always putting the consumer first.
María Lucía Mañueco
An agricultural engineer and water management expert passionate about promoting efficient and responsible water use. In this interview, María takes us into her work and shows us how she is driving real change in the way water is managed on farms.
An agricultural engineer and researcher at INTA (Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria), she works on water issues — irrigation and water management, with a watershed-level approach.
María has been part of GLOBALG.A.P.’s technical working group since 2017, contributing to the Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) standard through to its current version 6 update and other related standards. She explains how directly her research feeds into that standard: calculating how much water fruit crops actually need, using irrigation efficiently, and making proper use of water resources more broadly.
The Changemaker Awards 2026 celebrate the individuals and organizations creating meaningful change across the agricultural sector. The awards form a key part of the Women in Agriculture campaign and recognizse initiatives that are empowering women and driving positive change.
The 2026 edition aligns with the United Nations’ International Year of the Woman Farmer, placing a global spotlight on the achievements of women farmers and the importance of creating more equitable opportunities across agriculture. This shared focus highlights the essential role women play in building productive and responsible food systems.
The awards showcase outstanding initiatives at the AGRAYA SUMMIT 2026, where shortlisted applicants gain international recognition and join a growing community of changemakers committed to shaping the future of farming.
Applications for the 2026 awards have now closed. We look forward to announcing the finalists and celebrating their achievements at the SUMMIT 2026.
Share your story
Behind every farm, business, research project, and community initiative is a story worth telling.
Whether you are a farmer, entrepreneur, researcher, advisor, student, or advocate, we want to hear about your experiences and the impact you are making. By sharing your story, you will become part of a growing global movement celebrating the women shaping the future of agriculture.
Share your story and become part of the Women in Agriculture campaign.
