It was meant as a gentle nod to the women who farm the often bleak uplands of south-west Britain. But the landlord of a Dartmoor pub has been forced to rethink a decision to bill one of their lunchtime staples not as a “ploughman’s” but a “ploughperson’s”.
“It’s caused something of a Twitter storm, hasn’t it?” said Dicky Harrison, landlord of the Tors pub in the Devon village of Belstone.
“It was a bit of fun. We’re on Dartmoor and have lots of friends who are farmers – ladies as well as men – who all work the land. It was a nod to the ladies, without being too political. It wasn’t done to cause offence, but women plough too.
“I’m not really sure what to do now, to be honest – whether to change it or not. It just seemed the right thing to do at the time.”
After an image of the menu went viral, critics accused the pub of “wokeness”. “Won’t be visiting this woke establishment,” said one. “Most people are sick to death of this ridiculous woke cancel culture, please don’t make the excuse this was a bit of fun clearly it wasn’t.”
Another said: “Sorry guys, won’t be visiting a ‘woke’ pub for my lunch. Yes, there are lots of women farmers today and I salute them, but stop changing the past.”
A third questioned why the pub’s menu had offered “Mama’s chocolate mousse”, claiming all items should be gender neutral. Harrison explained it was called this because it was his mum’s recipe.
The ploughperson’s (which costs £12.50) features cheese from Devon, ham roasted with molasses and English mustard, picked onions, chutney and sourdough bread. It has been on the menu for a couple of years and has occasionally raised a smile or prompted a chat – but there had been no outcry until now.
On Monday, local female farmers sprung to the pub’s defence, with one, Michaela Reddaway, posing for a photo with a pitchfork and chickens in front of the pub. She farms sheep and cattle and has worked in agriculture since she was a child, when she helped out her grandparents.
“I don’t think the name is an issue really,” said Reddaway, who was out of breath when she spoke to the Guardian “because I’ve been chasing sheep around”. She saw it as a bit of fun. “It was a tongue-in-cheek thing, but the role of women in farming definitely needs to be highlighted. It’s still considered a male-dominated role, but there are loads of women – and more and more all the time. It’s not just men driving the tractor; it’s women too.”
Kelly Gilbert, bar manager at the Tors and a smallholder on Dartmoor who keeps chickens and sheep, said she was surprised that the row had blown up. “Men and women do the same jobs here, there’s no discrimination,” she said.
“When I saw ploughperson’s on the menu, it tickled me – it wasn’t political. When you walk into Belstone, you could be walking back 100 years, but everyone, men and women, work the moor. The women don’t get snubbed just because they are women and the men don’t get snubbed because they are men.”
