The role that women play in agriculture in the U.S. has changed greatly in just the past 40 years. Just from 1978 to 2007 the number of women-operated farms in the U.S. increased from 5 to 14%. These numbers only reflect women who operate farms and ranches, this does include women who are educators, researchers, and agri-business people. Women are increasing in numbers in these areas of the agricultural sector as well. The USDA has realized this increase in women in agriculture and the barriers that still exist that make it hard for women to manage farms. With this in mind, they have created a department dedicated to women in agriculture. Here they provide information on grants available to women farmers and stories from other women who are working in agriculture. Other organizations are following suit in helping women operate farms and ranches. Organizations like Annie’s Project are dedicated to educating women who want to be successful operating their own farms. The woman who the organization was named after grew up in Northern Illinois and successfully managed her husband’s farm. She provided much of the financial insight that led to her retirement as a wealthy woman. The organization provides education in six educational sessions: financial risk, human resource risk, legal risk, market risk, and production risk. The goal is to ensure that these women are successful.
Women have still found ways to move from the farmhand to the farm manager and other roles agriculture in recent years despite not using programs like Annie’s Project. Women like Deborah Griscom Passmore was already involved in the agricultural sector in 1892 as a botanical artist employed by the USDA.
She illustrated new cultivars and varieties developed by the USDA; these illustrations were then used to display to growers as well as in many technical reports.
Women like Minnie Lou Bradley made history by being the first woman to major in animal husbandry from Oklahoma State University in 1949. In 1955 Bradley moved to the Texas Panhandle to found Bradley 3 Ranch. Minnie Lou Bradley grew Bradley 3 Ranch into an award-winning ranch for land management and genetic beef breeding and has received recognition from BEEF magazine as one of the top 50 beef producers in the U.S.
She says that being in the meat processing industry which is primarily dominated by men is “tough” but gives the advice to other women to “be a lady and dress properly for the occasion.” Both of these women are examples of how women are succeeding in agriculture. Through both accounts, you can see that success in agriculture is diverse but just as laudable. Women like Deborah Griscom Passmore might be working in research or business away from the grueling labor of the farm, whereas women like Minnie Lou Bradley embrace the world of men in production agriculture and find their success. 
The beauty is, that women are able to succeed and there are government organizations and an army of other successful women willing to support other young women with an interest and dream in agriculture. Whether it may be managing a ranch or working in agricultural research the support is there.
