Women make up nearly 40% of the agricultural producers in Kentucky. The number of ladies who own and operate farms and agribusinesses continues to increase each year. The importance of their contributions to a vibrant agricultural economy are tremendous. 

The Mammoth Cave Area ANR and HORT Agents teamed together to offer a 3 part hybrid evening series entitled “Ladies in Ag” in February 2022. This program was designed by agents to help educate, empower, inspire, and connect ladies involved in the agricultural field to women located in the South Central Kentucky area of. 

The format for this new education program featured a combination of motivational stories from resilient agricultural women in the area paired with educational materials to assist them in further developing their farms. Videos were pre-recorded and edited before the program and were then shown through Zoom to share personal experiences, successes, and challenges. Educational subjects to follow the videos featured information on risk management, business planning, setting goals, as well as marketing. 

Ladies in Agriculture program was marketed on the Farm and Home Show through WBKO Channel 13, Extension newsletters, Get the Scoop Radio Show, and on several social media pages. A total of 59 ladies from Allen, Barren, Butler, Edmonson, Hart, Logan, Metcalfe, Monroe, Simpson, and Warren counties registered for the Ladies in Agriculture program.

The first session was held over Zoom and featured videos of Loretta Lyons, owner of Hade’s Triple K Farms in Monroe County as well as Michelle Howell from Need More Acres Farm in Allen County. Following the videos, Warren County Extension Agent for Horticulture highlighted 5 areas of farm risk management and provided participants with homework to help them identify risks on their farm. 

The second class was also delivered via Zoom and featured Laney Snider and Danielle Allen from Ruby Branch Farms in Simpson County and Katherine Woodward with Black Lick Creek Apiary & Market in Logan County. Educational materials and PowerPoint presentations highlighted business planning and goal setting and business plans.

The third session was held in-person at the Warren County Extension Office to give participants an opportunity to meet in-person and to allow for networking opportunities. Attendees were able to connect over a delicious meal together and discuss questions as a group with roundtable discussion. Several agricultural organizations were represented and had information to discuss more about their programs and resources including USDA Farm Service Agency, Kentucky Farm Bureau, Soil Conservation, Extension Service, and the Small Business Development Center. To end the evening, Sharon Furches, 2^nd Vice President with Kentucky Farm Bureau, addressed the group as the keynote speaker. 

At the end of the in-person meeting, the Ladies in Agriculture participants were all smiles and indicated that they would like to meet again in the future. Currently, plans and preparations are being made to meet together in the fall of 2022 to build on networking opportunities and future programming to assist this group of ladies.