Bàrbara Mesquida: "I get angry when I'm invited to a panel discussion because I'm a woman."

What is a typical day like for you in the field?

— In my case, making wine isn't just about making wine, it's about taking care of our vineyards. We work with our own vineyards, so I'm not only in touch with the land, but also with the production, management, and marketing processes. In other words, my work is 360 degrees.

Is there any task that you find particularly rewarding or difficult?

— What I like most about this daily routine is seeing how time passes, the days go by, and the seasons change. With a careful eye, you try to understand and follow the seasons to obtain the best possible grapes, understanding that outside the village, two plus two never equals four. Every year is different, and no harvest is the same as the last, so you have to be present and keep a careful eye on things.

What are the main challenges you face as women in the agricultural world today?

— The truth is, I've never considered whether being a woman in the rural world has or doesn't have an impact on my daily life. I mean, I'm Bárbara, and I have my own way of doing things and being. It's true that sometimes I get angry when I'm invited to a roundtable or a talk just because I'm a woman. I want to go anywhere just because of who I am, because of my professional career, because of my way of seeing and understanding things... No man is invited to a roundtable just because he's a man.

Do you think progress has been made in this area?

— I think they go beyond being a man or a woman. I think that, on the one hand, we're experiencing a boom in organic farming, with an increase in acreage, but I'm also concerned about the concentration of farms and the disappearance of small farmers and a way of doing things. I think the challenge is trying to survive in a world where the bigwigs are increasingly having a say, and where the small farmers are being silenced and hindered. In other words, one of the challenges is getting the public to understand that the power of decision lies with each individual through their choices if we want to continue having cultivated fields, open local stores, etc. What we must do is focus on our own, local and nearby products, which, in the end, is what creates the fabric.

How has your work or way of doing things changed over the years? Have technology or the weather, for example, played a significant role?

— On a farm like ours, technology is certainly present. We're increasingly seeing the emergence of new devices and tools that facilitate work and management, but it's also true that they often complicate small farms in terms of costs, available personnel, and management capacity. Therefore, everything has an upside and a downside. I believe that, beyond technology, the most important thing is the adverse weather conditions we experience, both from droughts and after intense periods of rain, the wood diseases that weaken our plants that are already a few years old, the arrival of slightly damaged plant material from farm workers, which is very important to me. They say they will stop buying milk, and the disappearance of livestock farming, especially extensive livestock farming. I believe that recovering livestock farming, having manure again, and being able to contribute organic matter to our land is fundamental for the future.

What would you like society to better understand about the life and work of peasants, especially women?

— What we often forget is that nature has its time, and that after summer comes autumn, and that it's important for the seasons to pass and for the weather to be on our side. It's important to be patient, to know how to wait, and to be patient, especially in a world that's moving faster and forgetting about seasons and the seasonality of fruits and vegetables.