Money for Northern New York Ag Program Included in State Senate Budget

This was submitted by the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program:


The New York State Senate Budget proposes including $500,000 for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program.

The program conducts research, provides best management practices outreach and technical assistance projects in the state’s six northernmost counties: Jefferson, St. Lawrence, Lewis, Franklin, Essex and Clinton.

“The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program, the steering committee of North Country farmers from across the region, and the farm businesses we serve are pleased to see the Senate budget that recognizes how critical agriculture is to the Northern New York economy and to the state economy,” said program co-chair Jon Greenwood, a dairy farmer in St. Lawrence County.

“The New York State Senate funding of the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program has provided the means for farmers to access the best academic and field research expertise to solve problems such as alfalfa snout beetle, to develop new farm-based enterprises such as bioenergy crops, and to enhance our agricultural environmental stewardship through precision targeting of nutrients, fertilizer and manure resources,” said program co-chair Joe Giroux, a dairy farmer in Clinton County.

The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program  received $500,000 in last year's approved Senate and state budgets.

New York State Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Senator Patty Ritchie recently announced the $5.2 billon "Grown in New York" plan designed to strengthen the state’s agricultural industry by expanding markets for New York-grown products.

Current projects focused on by the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program include:
·     boosting the dairy industry feed supply
·     enhancing agricultural environmental stewardship with tile drainage,
·     cold climate calf feeding and housing
·     coping with diseases and pests such as brown root rot and alfalfa snout beetle in field crops and leaf mold and leek moth in vegetable crops,
·     improving irrigation in NNY apple orchards, and developing amelanchier as a new berry crop for NNY
·     increasing maple sap yields
·     developing bioenergy crops, and
·     controlling parasites in NNY sheep flocks and goat herds.

The Northern New York agricultural industry contributes nearly $600 million in farm product market value to the local economy and has a local payroll of approximately $53 million.

Go to www.nnyagdev.org for more information on the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program.