One-third of Pitt County farmers are women, according to a recent USDA analysis :: WRAL.com

There’s a noticeable shift happening in American agriculture, with women now making up over one-third of U.S. farmers, according to the Department of Agriculture.

The U.S. Census confirms the number of women in farming has been rising since 2002.

In Pitt County, WITN reports Stephanie Coonradt and her five daughters are among the 1.2 million women who are farmers or producers in the U.S., according to the Department of Agriculture.

“Women at our core are really good nurturers,” Coonradt said. “I think we’re good entrepreneurs. I think we’re good at cultivating and growing and multitasking, and so if you put that with agriculture and farming, it just molds so beautifully together.”

A recent Trace One analysis shows 33.7% of farmers in Pitt County are women, and almost 50% of farms in Pitt County are female-operated.

“Farming is not just for the immediate, it’s for the future too, and so women, we’re really good at that,” Coonradt said.

The analysis found that women farmers are concentrated in livestock with smaller animals or speciality crops and less likely to farm on a large, commerical scale.

“It’s an opportunity for women to be their own boss and to farm with their husbands or maybe on their own,” Miriam Lewis, a farmer, said. “I think women are becoming much more capable of doing things like that, and they have much more respect than in the past.”

Coonradt and her daughters run Flourshing Acre Farm in Stokes, North Carolina. The farm is home to more than 100 animals, including lambs, chickens, ducks and one cow on 1.5 acres.

“Agriculture and that whole realm of growing your food and raising your animals, and whether you’re doing both or just one, is going to help the next generation,” Coonradt said.

Coonradt explains the increase of women in farming is due to a desire for a healthier and more sustainable living. She also said land size doesn’t have to limit you.

“It is attainable,” Coonradt said. “You don’t have to have 100 acres. You can have an acre and a half.”