Growing, processing and selling food has traditionally formed the foundation of all economies, and New York's is no different. The state's 30,000 farms generate over $5 billion in economic activity annually and serve as the cornerstone of the state's $46 billion farm and food economy.
A growing number of New York's public leaders have recognized that producing food in close proximity to millions of eaters is a significant source of jobs and economic opportunity. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has launched economic development initiatives in Greek yogurt, on-farm wine, beer and spirit production and programs promoting New York-produced foods, such as Fresh Connect and Taste NY.
Yet the natural ingredients in farming and growing food — healthy soil and clean water — have been at risk in New York. Since the early 1980s, almost half a million acres of farmland have been paved over by subdivisions and real estate development in New York — an equivalent of nearly 5,000 farms or one farm every 3½ days.
To address this threat, New York established a Farmland Protection Program in 1996. The program has provided more than $100 million to aid more than 75 towns and 50 counties in developing strategies for supporting local farmers and permanently protect roughly 200 farms across New York. These funds have been essential in making it possible for farmers in Albany, Columbia, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Washington and 23 other counties to protect their farms, often in partnership with local land trusts.
But when the state's Environmental Protection Fund, including the Farmland Protection Program, was cut in half in 2008, the program faced $70 million in outstanding funding commitments to 61 farm families to help them in permanently protecting their land. For five years, state and local partners and farm families have worked diligently to complete these outstanding projects and reduce this backlog of commitments.
Now, things are looking up. The governor and state legislators agreed to increase the EPF to $153 million in last year's budget, including $13 million for the Farmland Protection Program. Meanwhile, a growing number of farmers across New York are interested in permanently protecting their farms. Many of these families plan to use funds they receive to reinvest in their farm by upgrading farm equipment, constructing new barns, purchasing additional farmland and bringing a new generation into the farm business.
And on Nov. 20, a crowd of more than 225 participants gathered in Albany at American Farmland Trust's Harvesting Opportunities in New York conference. Farmers, conservation groups, public health leaders and economic development experts met to talk about growing New York's farm and food economy and protecting farmland.
This is a pivotal time in New York. The state has waited five years since it last sought new applications from farmers interested in protecting their land. It was the responsible thing to do, but now New York is ready to move forward.
We urge the governor to accept new applications for the Farmland Protection Program this year. Further, we encourage him to move forward in rebuilding the Environmental Protection Fund by appropriating $200 million in his 2014-15 Executive Budget proposal, including $25 million for the state's Farmland Protection Program.
Cuomo has embraced the economic opportunities inherent in farming and producing food and the stewardship of New York's land and water resources that makes these enterprises possible. Restarting our state's Farmland Protection Program and increasing funding for the EPF and the Farmland Protection Program are critical steps forward in growing and sustaining New York's farm economy. It's time to start protecting farms again in New York.
Andrew McElwaine is president and CEO of American Farmland Trust. David Haight is the New York state director of the farm conservation group. http://www.farmland.org/newyork