Women Farmers Drive India’s Dairy Backbone

Women farmers are emerging as the invisible backbone of India’s agriculture and dairy ecosystem, contributing 60–75% of total agricultural labour while forming nearly 80% of marginal farmers, yet remaining significantly under-recognised in policy and ownership structures.

Their role spans the entire value chain—from sowing and livestock management to post-harvest handling—while also contributing an estimated 3.5 billion hours of unpaid agricultural labour annually in South Asia, underlining their critical yet undervalued economic contribution.

Despite this massive contribution, structural inequalities persist, with less than 13% of agricultural land owned by women and fewer than 12% accessing formal agricultural credit, limiting their ability to invest, scale, and participate in formal dairy and farm economies.

In India’s dairy sector—central to the country’s position as the world’s largest milk producer at over 230 million metric tonnes annually—women play a foundational role in daily operations, reinforcing the legacy of the White Revolution as a largely women-driven movement at the grassroots level.

The report highlights that lack of land rights, limited access to finance, and low representation in cooperatives and policy-making bodies continue to restrict women farmers’ economic agency.

As India pushes toward inclusive rural growth, stakeholders are calling for structural reforms including joint land ownership, improved credit access, and stronger institutional representation to unlock productivity and sustainability gains across the dairy and agriculture sectors.

Source: Dairynews7x7 29th March, 2026 Read full story here

#WomenFarmers #IndianDairy #InclusiveAgriculture #DairyDevelopment #RuralEconomy #AgriPolicy #Dairynews7x7