Effects of organic farming on the empowerment of women: A case study on the perception of female farmers in Odisha, India

Several projects claim that organic farming empowers women and promotes gender equality. To explore the effects of organic farming initiatives on the empowerment of women as perceived by female farmers, a qualitative field study with interviews in Odisha (India) was conducted. Results show that, although organic farming has positive impacts on women, such as improvements in health and food security, there are significant draw-backs due to factors such as the additional workload. Women are also widely excluded from business decisions in organic farming, as the investigated organic initiative works within traditional gender patterns. Although female farmer groups exist, women are neither included on the cooperative level nor in agricultural training on organic methods, which leads to the reinforcement of deeply embedded gender inequality. Fully exploiting the potential for empowering women through organic farming and increasing gender equality in India would require technical training and working beyond traditional social structures, to include women in higher administrative levels.