An interesting story from the Watertown Daily Times.
Check it out at http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news03/marketing-officials-scramble-to-reassure-farmers-in-the-wake-of-termination-notices-20170928
Thursday, September 28, 2017
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Saturday, September 23, 2017
Development Agency OKs Supports Agreement for Proposed Agribusiness Park in Jefferson County
Great news for Jefferson County and Northern New York!!
Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news03/jcida-approves-support-agreement-for-proposed-agribusiness-park--20170922 to check out the story.
Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news03/jcida-approves-support-agreement-for-proposed-agribusiness-park--20170922 to check out the story.
Wednesday, September 20, 2017
SUNY Potsdam Brings New Tower Farms to Campus
SUNY Potsdam students are doing some vertical farming.
Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news05/suny-potsdam-brings-new-tower-farms-on-campus-20170919 to check out the story.
Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news05/suny-potsdam-brings-new-tower-farms-on-campus-20170919 to check out the story.
Friday, September 15, 2017
Dairy Farmers Deal With Post Hurricane Realities
This isn't from New York state, but still an interesting read.
Go to http://www.bradenton.com/news/business/article173124796.html to see the story.
Go to http://www.bradenton.com/news/business/article173124796.html to see the story.
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
First-Ever TAste NY Craft Beverage Week Set for Nov. 5-11
The first-ever Taste NY Craft Beverage Week will be held Nov. 5-11 in New York City.
First announced in Gov. Andrew Cuomo's 2017 State of the State address, the annual
event will boost the exposure of the state's world-class wine, beer,
spirits, and ciders, helping to increase sales and drive economic
growth.
In anticipation of the inaugural event, a grand
tasting was held Sept. 12 at the iconic Pier A Harbor House to connect
producers from across the state to New York City restaurant, bar, and
retail owners and purchasing agents, encouraging them to participate.
Cuomo also launched a new webpage at https://taste.ny.gov/2017-taste-ny-craft-beverage-week#_blank this link where interested businesses can sign up to join Craft Beverage Week.
"The
craft beverage industry in New York has experienced unprecedented
growth in recent years and as a result, has become a critical driver
of regional economies in every corner of this state," Cuomo said.
"Craft Beverage Week gives local producers a chance to partner with
restaurants across New York to showcase their top-notch products, and I
encourage craft beverage enthusiasts from near and far to come out and
experience the very best our wineries, cideries,
breweries and distilleries have to offer," he said.
During
Craft Beverage Week, participating restaurants, bars, taverns and
retail stores are encouraged to offer special events and promotions
to highlight New York wine, beer, spirits and ciders and increase sales
of these top-notch products.
Events and promotions may include meet the
brewer dinners, sommelier-led tastings, dinner pairings, tap takeovers,
happy hour specials, New York craft cocktail
specials, and informational seminars.
The goal was to promote participation in Craft Beverage Week, and provide these businesses an opportunity to build relationships that will last beyond the week-long promotion.
New York's Apple Crop Average in Size, Excellent in Quality
New York really is the Big Apple and the state’s apple growers are now demonstrating why, as pickers statewide begin harvesting a forecasted 28 million cartons – or 1.1 billion pounds – of apples over the coming weeks.
The association is planning a full court press to get the word out about this year’s crop to wholesale, institutional and consumer customers alike, said apple association President Cynthia Haskins.
The association reports that while New York’s 2017 apple crop will be of average size for the state, the crop size is about the only thing that will be average this year.
The state has generally had favorable weather for bloom and during the growing season, so apple fans – wholesale and consumer alike – will find ample supplies of all their favorite New York state apples and cider this fall. Fruit size and finish are expected to be good.
“New York state grows more apples than any other state east of the Mississippi River, our state is made for growing apples,” said Haskins. “There is no reason for New Yorkers and other East Coast buyers to look any further than their own back yard for great tasting apples and apple cider.”
The association is highlighting the broad range of apple tourism opportunities that are available across the state, where apples are grown from the lower Hudson Valley to the upper Adirondacks, and to the west.
“Our consumer marketing is designed to complement our retail activities, by driving demand and traffic to mass-market retailers as well as to our industry’s own direct marketers,” noted Haskins.
There are many ways for New Yorkers to sample the New York state apple industry’s wares and support local apple growers at the same time, from family-friendly apple picking day trips to whole weeks dedicated to adults-only hard cider tasting.
The association’s website, www.NYAppleCountry.com is designed to help consumers find a farm market, “u pick”, cider maker or apple festival nearby, with a handy locator map located front and center on the website’s home page.
To learn more about New York’s cider industry, consumers should visit www.NYCider.com this link.
To learn more about the New York Apple Association as well as the New York state apple industry and its wares, go to www.NYAppleCountry.com this link.
Cream Cheese Festival Sept. 16 in Lowville
It's that time of year again to celebrate everything Cream Cheese!!
The annual Cream Cheese Festival is set for 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sept. 16 in downtown Lowville, Lewis County.
Here are some of the events scheduled during this salute to cream cheese:
Games, including cream cheese Twister from 1 to 2 p.m., a cream cheese eating contest from 2 to 3 p.m., cream cheese Plinko from 4 to 5 p.m.and a cream cheese toss from 5 to 6 p.m.. There also is a mini tractor pull from 3 to 4 p.m. and all day, a cream cheese mural painting contest will be held.
 |
| The big cheesecake at a previous Cream Cheese Festival in Lowville |
Bands that will be performing during the day include the Nelson Brothers Band, Doc Yukon, Mark Mason, No Vacancy, Under Cover, Shawn Corbett, Kickstand, Adapter and Gabriel Shepherd.
And remember -- the festival is home of the World's Largest Cheesecake!!
For more information, go to http://creamcheesefestival.com/index.php this link or go to the festival's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/LowvilleCreamCheeseFestival/
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
State Ag Commissioner Hosts Meeting to Help New Farmers
Meeting coming up for new and beginning farmers.
Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news03/state-agriculture-commissioner-hosts-meeting-to-help-new-farmers--20170911 to see the story.
Go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news03/state-agriculture-commissioner-hosts-meeting-to-help-new-farmers--20170911 to see the story.
Monday, September 4, 2017
Dairy Farmers Persevering During Adverse Industry Trends; Look for Silver Lining
From EMPIRE FARM & Dairy magazine
By MARCUS WOLF
MWOLF@WDT.NET
Dairy farmers like Amy Beyer want industry conditions to improve after years of working to produce more milk to keep up with bills — to compensate for earning less for each pound of milk her cows produce.
Beyer, who with her husband, Ernest, owns Glory Days Farm in Lowville, said despite working harder than ever, they have only earned enough to cover their costs and support their family. There is no revenue to put into upgrades, new equipment or other improvements to their operation.
“Your head is down and you just stay focused,” she said. “There’s not a lot of time to look up and say, ‘Boy, this is a wonderful life.’”
Trying to preserve their operations despite receiving a lower price for their milk and dealing with consistent, if not rising, costs, difficulties securing labor and losing crops during harsh weather conditions have drained many farmers of their energy and morale.
“Believe me, there’s days where you start to think if it’s all worth it,” said Ronald Robbins, who owns North Harbor Dairy in Hounsfield, Jefferson County.
More than two years of low earnings have pushed Robbins to farm while predominantly breaking even or losing money. Despite adverse conditions, he said dairy farming is in his DNA.
“It’s been good to (my) family,” he said.
Beyer said farming is still the best way to raise her five children because it teaches them the values of hard work that translate to the farm, school and sports.
At the same time, Beyer said, she and her husband have discouraged their oldest son, William, from taking over the family farm or starting his own because they want him to avoid the financial stress and earn enough money to raise a family and retire someday.
William Beyer, 18, will begin his first term at St. Lawrence University this fall. He has in the past expressed a desire to become a farmer.
“We don’t want to encourage that, and we are certainly not setting him up for it,” she said.
Some experts, however, predict slightly higher prices and improved market productions in 2017, providing a few farmers with optimistic outlooks.
“It’s got to get better at some point,” said Lyle Wood, who owns H Wood Farms in Cape Vincent with Scott Bourcy.
THE RISE AND FALL
Prices paid to farmers for their milk in the Northeast peaked in 2014, a peak that broke a record high throughout most of the region.
The average statistical uniform price, or blend price, paid to farmers who had their milk shipped to handlers in the Northeast Market Area, which covers most of the Northeast, reported at 3.5 percent butterfat content, was $24.28 per hundredweight, according to the Market Administrator’s Annual Statistical Bulletin for 2014.
That price was reportedly the highest average price for Northeast farmers since the order’s inception and was $4.03, or 20 percent, more than the 2013 average.
Bruce Krupke, executive vice president of the Northeast Dairy Association Inc., said producers and processors in 2011 and 2012 began to reach out to the world marketplace, creating a spike in exports to countries including China, Mexico and Canada.
U.S. dairy producers previously exported 1 to 3 percent of dairy products, but exports increased to about 16 percent.
“We were finding a new place to sell our products — a whole new consumer to sell to,” Krupke said. “It kind of created a new opportunity and industry for us.”
At the same time, demand for dairy products at home continued to increase, an increase Krupke, who also is chairman of the Empire State Council of Agricultural Organizations, said continues to this day. He also said an economy improving from the 2008 recession and a resurgence in processing plants also helped bring prices to record highs.
Robbins said he remembers state officials’ ambitions to boost yogurt production at the Yogurt and Dairy Summit in 2014, when New York state was the leading yogurt producer in the country.
“We were going to be the yogurt capital of the world,” Robbins said of the state’s goals at the time, but “the yogurt boom never materialized.”
The price paid to farmers in the Northeast for their milk dropped dramatically in late 2014 and early 2015 and continued, for the most part, to decline into 2017.
The average blend price at 3.5 percent butterfat in the Northeast Marketing Area dropped in 2015 by $7.14 per hundred-weight, from $24.28 in 2014, to $17.14. That price dropped again in 2016 by an additional $1.24, to $15.90.
The blend price was up in January this year, but decreased consecutively into April, according to the monthly reports for the marketing area.
Andrew Novakovic, a professor of agriculture economics at Cornell University, Ithaca, said the price dairy farmers receive for their milk almost routinely fluctuates in three-year cycles.
“We’ve now broken that cycle for the first time. We’re now in three years of really depressed prices,” Robbins said.
The decline in international demand when China dropped out of the market played a crucial role in the drop in milk prices, Novakovic said.
In addition to China reducing its demand, Robbins said, a few processing plant closures reduced the number of outlets for farmers or the cooperatives that represent them. Chobani opened a processing plant in Idaho and cut its production in New York, Robbins said. The Muller Quaker Dairy plant in Batavia closed in early 2016.
“You had a perfect storm of events,” Robbins said.
Farmers, however, continued producing enough milk for a demand that no longer existed at the time, pushing the price they received down and flooding the market.
The amount of milk handlers in the Northeast received from producers in 2016 reportedly exceeded 27 billion pounds for the first time, according to the Northeast 2016 bulletin. Milk pooled in the marketing area was slightly more than 26 billion pounds in 2015, about 25.8 billion in 2014 and 25.4 billion in 2013, according to each year’s respective report.
Robbins said many farmers purchased additional cows and expanded production around 2014 to take advantage of the increasing milk prices. Some, however, have continued buying more cows and increasing production just to keep up with the costs of their operations.
State Department of Agriculture and Markets Commissioner Richard Ball said state milk production is up 5 percent while exports have declined by 2 to 3 percent.
“There’s a whole lot of milk being made and not enough homes to go to for it to be processed,” said John D. Peck, a Jefferson County legislator who owns Peck Homestead Farm in Carthage.
Jon Greenwood, owner of a large Potsdam dairy farm, said dairy prices have always been determined by the relationship between supply and demand.
Until a few decades ago, milk prices fluctuated based solely on what was happening in a particular region of the country.
However, today, local farmers can be impacted by supply and demand changes around the world, according to Greenwood, who is president of the St. Lawrence County Farm Bureau.
“We never used to export, but we were up to exporting 18 percent,” he said.
Giving an example, he said a lessening demand for U.S. milk products from China and Southeast Asia contributed to the drop in milk prices that started about two years ago.
In particular, China was importing a lot of powdered milk used in baby formula.
”That market has gone down significantly,” Greenwood said.
While international demand dropped, Ronald Kuck, livestock educator for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County, said demand for dairy products per capita has increased since 2015. The problem, Kuck said, still lies with overproduction.
“Supply and demand,” he said. “It’s that simple.”
Novakovic said cutting production could balance supply and demand, but few, if any, producers would cut down their own production.“No farmer would rationally cut back the number of cows they’re milking,” Peck said. “That’s the main thing we can control to be able to get back more.”
KEEPING UP
Farmers still need to keep up with their routine expenses despite earning less, and while some farmers’ costs have remained stable, others’ expenses have risen.
Robbins said he recently had an in-depth analysis conducted to review his expenses from 2012 to 2017.
He said costs including labor, insurance, workers compensation, health insurance, utilities and technical supplies all increased from the five-year-period. At the same time, his cost for feed remained stable and the cost of fuel decreased.
“What we found was those cost-of-production increases are centered around a lot of things we don’t have control over,” he said.
While Peck said feed and supply expenses have remained relatively stable, he has to pay more for his family’s health insurance.
Beyer said many of her costs, including veterinary bills, have climbed in recent years.
“We basically are just kind of surviving,” she said.
Kuck said farmers typically plan five years in advance, including what upgrades and practices to implement.
Farms that evolve by investing in more efficient equipment, cow comfort and infrastructure will survive in the industry, Kuck said. The past few years, however, have pushed dairy farmers to adjust those plans, accommodate for decreased cash flow, and prioritize.
“They just can’t do as much as they would like to do,” he said.
Wood said he wanted to expand his feed storage and build a new garage, but lower revenue in recent years has halted those plans.
Earning less revenue also has prevented the Beyer family from upgrading or replacing equipment, Amy Beyer said. The family, instead, has to predominantly repair equipment by themselves and “pray everything holds out.”
“You want to be a progressive farmer, but you can’t,” she said. “Your hands are tied.”
Reduction in investments on the farm not only hinders dairy operations, but impacts several agribusiness sectors in the industry.
New York Farm Bureau President David Fisher, who is also a family owner of Mapleview Dairy in Madrid, said farmers having to cut back their spending brings less revenue to agribusinesses such as machinery, milking equipment and feed suppliers.
“It affects the whole economy,” he said.
Labor expenses have also increased for several dairy farmers, particularly New York farmers who have to compete with other industries as the state minimum wage rises annually. The state minimum wage is set to increase 70 cents every year in areas outside of New York City, Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester counties until it reaches $12.50 on Dec. 31, 2020.
“Who’s going to want to go milk a cow for eight hours a day when they can go flip a burger and make more?” Peck said.
At the same time, farmers nationwide are finding it more challenging to find prospective employees willing to work long hours milking cows and harvesting crops for feed.
Robbins argued that farming provides competitive pay rates when compared to other industries, but hours of hard work deter people from applying for farm jobs. A stigma also surrounds farm labor that leads many
Americans to believe farm work is beneath them, Robbins said.
Novakovic also said farm labor allows little room for breaks and vacations.
“The work is demanding, and frankly, the work is very dirty,” Novakovic said. “It doesn’t matter how much you get paid.”
In response to a lack of interest from American laborers, several farmers hire and rely on migrant workers, a method made difficult under federal regulations.
Krupke said all agriculture in New York relies on a work force made up of legal migrant workers and the ability to hire those workers. Congress, he said, must enact new laws that will make it easier for people from other countries to work at U.S. farms.
Robbins said lawmakers need to create a workable guest program that meets the needs of the industry while maintaining the interests of national security.
“It’s just Washington’s lack of fortitude to make that happen,” Robbins said.
Weather in recent years, including drought conditions last year and excess rainfall in several parts of the country this year, have harmed crop quality and yield for many dairy farmers, which can have adverse effects on cows’ nutrition and reduce production.
Robbins said a cold summer and fall in 2015 lowered his crop quality, the 2016 drought reduced quality and volume and this year’s excess rainfall has drawn insects that have damaged his crops.
Wood said his farm experienced about average weather in 2014 and 2015, but excess heat in 2016 reduced his soybean and hay yield, and excess rainfall this year has inhibited his harvesting plans.
Hot and humid weather at Peck Homestead Farm make cows uncomfortable and heat stressed, Peck said, which reduces production. The 2016 drought dried up the grass in Mr. Peck’s pasture early on, but he said 2015 and this year haven’t inhibited his operations.
“Weather’s always a challenging thing,” he said. “You have no choice but to take what comes. There’s no point complaining about it.”
ADAPTING TO TOUGH TIMES
Farmers are naturally resilient when facing adversity, Ball said, and they haven’t stood idle during recent challenging years. They have continued to adapt by exploring opportunities such as planting new crops and have advanced their education and marketing abilities.
“When adversity comes their way ... they keep going and figure out how to get it done,” he said.
In order to at least break even, Robbins said he pre-sells 50 to 60 percent of his milk, meaning he earns revenue at the current price before having it shipped months later. Milk prices fluctuate monthly, and Robbins said pre-selling his milk allows him to take advantage of months with slightly higher prices.
Farmers like Robbins are also reviewing their bills and deciding what, if any, expenses they can reduce.
When compiling information for the 2016 Northeast Dairy Farm Summary, Farm Credit East staff members found farmers on average earned $15 per cow last year, up from a loss of $30 per cow in 2015, by cutting costs. One example includes a more than $4 decrease in net cost of production from 2014 to $16.79 per hundredweight last year.
“We’re tightening our belts and trying to save money wherever we can,” Fisher said. “Try to get by with whatever you got and make do.”
Despite trying to reduce costs, Novakovic said farmers have to be careful not to let their attempts to cut costs reduce their herd health and, in turn, production. Farmers who stick with their plans typically avoid a loss of production, Novakovic said, which doesn’t provide them with many options for cost reduction.
“Farmers, especially the better ones, develop a plan and stick to it,” he said. “They will continue to do it no matter what happens with these prices … when it’s bad, you just lie down and take a beating and the trick is how resilient you are.”
Farmers must expand and diversify their operations during adverse market conditions, Peck said. Peck has implemented technology that allows him to harvest earlier and mix crop silage in ways that increase its nutritional benefits for his cows. He also said he is trying to sell farm-raised beef.
LOOKING AHEAD
Many farmers and experts believe milk prices will increase slightly this year from 2016, although they will not soon return to the record-breaking prices of three years ago.
Average dairy prices are expected to rise by $2 per hundredweight from last year, according to Farm Credit East, bringing more revenue for farmers. Average blend prices for farmers who have their milk shipped to Northeast handlers has increased from $16.39 per hundredweight in April to $17.53 in June. July prices are not yet available.
“It’s going to remain a sober year,” Mr. Ball said, “a gradual improvement.”
China has returned to the market with a demand for more dairy exports, Novakovic said, and other countries, including Vietnam, are providing additional markets for U.S. dairy products. Robbins also said the U.S. prices for products have become more competitive in the international marketplace.
“That’s sort of the light at the end of the tunnel,” he said.
Companies have also expressed plans to open new processing plants, Novakovic said. HP Hood recently purchased the Muller Quaker Dairy plant in Batavia. . Wood also said Dairy Farmers of America are investing in opening new plants.
The lack of milk processing plants in the Northeast has contributed to a surplus of milk that also drives down prices, Greenwood said.
“We have more milk than we have processors,” he said. “It’s critical that we get some plants built to take this milk supply.”
Krupke said dairy pricing should slightly increase so long as the economy, weather and overseas demand remain constant and manageable.
“I think they’re going to be constant,” he said. “I think we’re on this slow incline.”
Not all farmers, however, are as optimistic about the projected trends.
Peck said he believes the price will not increase, but will at least not decline any longer. Beyer said whatever increase in earnings she receives will go straight toward hauling fees.
“I almost feel like I’ve lost hope,” she said.
Officials at the state and federal levels have implemented programs and policies in an attempt to remediate adverse industry conditions, and their efforts are ongoing.
Ball said the state introduced the Climate Resilient Farming Grant program this year to help fund projects that help farmers deal with adverse weather like droughts.
Ball and his office have also pitched state agriculture products, including dairy, to Canada and Mexico and worked with the state Department of Labor to create more skilled laborers for agriculture by doubling the number of agriculture teachers and increasing aid for agricultural education.
U.S. Sens. Charles E. Schumer, and Kirsten E. Gillibrand, both D-N.Y., are looking to improve conditions for dairy farmers through the 2018 Farm Bill.
Sen. Schumer said in a statement that Congress, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, farmers and processors must work together to help farmers navigate volatile price fluctuations through a comprehensive policy for the upcoming Farm Bill.
“Simply put, the dairy price challenge is wreaking havoc across upstate farms, and I am devoting a lot of time and energy preparing for the 2018 Farm Bill, which must include flexible and sufficient support for the 21st century family dairy farmer,” Sen. Schumer said in a statement.
Sen. Gillibrand said in a statement that she wants to reform the Margin Protection Program for dairy producers, which was established in the 2014 Farm Bill to provide farmers with financial assistance when the difference between the price of milk and feed costs falls below a farmer’s selected coverage level.
She said the program hasn’t helped farmers when the price they are paid for their milk fell below the cost of production, and they should return to a system that uses a “reasonable base price” that adjusts to inflation.
“I plan to pressure (USDA) to use all of the tools at their disposal, like refunding premium payments, making useful decision tools, and joining me as I go out and talk to dairy farmers that struggle to make ends,” she said in a statement. “We owe our farmers more than a failed program and must do what we can to make things right.”
U.S. Rep. Elise M. Stefanik, R-Willsboro, has also joined others in Congress in a call for reforms to the Margin Protection Program, including premium rate reduction and ensuring farmers have a viable safety net, according to a news release.
Tom Flanagin, a spokesman for Stefanik, said in a statement that she also sponsored the Family Farm Relief Act, meant to expand the H-2A agricultural visa program to dairy farmers.
With 40 years of dairy farming experience under his belt, Greenwood is confident the milk price situation will eventually stabilize.
“Prices are going to go up, it’s just a matter of when and how much,” he said.
By MARCUS WOLF
MWOLF@WDT.NET
Dairy farmers like Amy Beyer want industry conditions to improve after years of working to produce more milk to keep up with bills — to compensate for earning less for each pound of milk her cows produce.
Beyer, who with her husband, Ernest, owns Glory Days Farm in Lowville, said despite working harder than ever, they have only earned enough to cover their costs and support their family. There is no revenue to put into upgrades, new equipment or other improvements to their operation.
“Your head is down and you just stay focused,” she said. “There’s not a lot of time to look up and say, ‘Boy, this is a wonderful life.’”
Trying to preserve their operations despite receiving a lower price for their milk and dealing with consistent, if not rising, costs, difficulties securing labor and losing crops during harsh weather conditions have drained many farmers of their energy and morale.
“Believe me, there’s days where you start to think if it’s all worth it,” said Ronald Robbins, who owns North Harbor Dairy in Hounsfield, Jefferson County.
More than two years of low earnings have pushed Robbins to farm while predominantly breaking even or losing money. Despite adverse conditions, he said dairy farming is in his DNA.
“It’s been good to (my) family,” he said.
Beyer said farming is still the best way to raise her five children because it teaches them the values of hard work that translate to the farm, school and sports.
At the same time, Beyer said, she and her husband have discouraged their oldest son, William, from taking over the family farm or starting his own because they want him to avoid the financial stress and earn enough money to raise a family and retire someday.
William Beyer, 18, will begin his first term at St. Lawrence University this fall. He has in the past expressed a desire to become a farmer.
“We don’t want to encourage that, and we are certainly not setting him up for it,” she said.
Some experts, however, predict slightly higher prices and improved market productions in 2017, providing a few farmers with optimistic outlooks.
“It’s got to get better at some point,” said Lyle Wood, who owns H Wood Farms in Cape Vincent with Scott Bourcy.
THE RISE AND FALL
Prices paid to farmers for their milk in the Northeast peaked in 2014, a peak that broke a record high throughout most of the region.
The average statistical uniform price, or blend price, paid to farmers who had their milk shipped to handlers in the Northeast Market Area, which covers most of the Northeast, reported at 3.5 percent butterfat content, was $24.28 per hundredweight, according to the Market Administrator’s Annual Statistical Bulletin for 2014.
That price was reportedly the highest average price for Northeast farmers since the order’s inception and was $4.03, or 20 percent, more than the 2013 average.
Bruce Krupke, executive vice president of the Northeast Dairy Association Inc., said producers and processors in 2011 and 2012 began to reach out to the world marketplace, creating a spike in exports to countries including China, Mexico and Canada.
U.S. dairy producers previously exported 1 to 3 percent of dairy products, but exports increased to about 16 percent.
“We were finding a new place to sell our products — a whole new consumer to sell to,” Krupke said. “It kind of created a new opportunity and industry for us.”
At the same time, demand for dairy products at home continued to increase, an increase Krupke, who also is chairman of the Empire State Council of Agricultural Organizations, said continues to this day. He also said an economy improving from the 2008 recession and a resurgence in processing plants also helped bring prices to record highs.
Robbins said he remembers state officials’ ambitions to boost yogurt production at the Yogurt and Dairy Summit in 2014, when New York state was the leading yogurt producer in the country.
“We were going to be the yogurt capital of the world,” Robbins said of the state’s goals at the time, but “the yogurt boom never materialized.”
The price paid to farmers in the Northeast for their milk dropped dramatically in late 2014 and early 2015 and continued, for the most part, to decline into 2017.
The average blend price at 3.5 percent butterfat in the Northeast Marketing Area dropped in 2015 by $7.14 per hundred-weight, from $24.28 in 2014, to $17.14. That price dropped again in 2016 by an additional $1.24, to $15.90.
The blend price was up in January this year, but decreased consecutively into April, according to the monthly reports for the marketing area.
Andrew Novakovic, a professor of agriculture economics at Cornell University, Ithaca, said the price dairy farmers receive for their milk almost routinely fluctuates in three-year cycles.
“We’ve now broken that cycle for the first time. We’re now in three years of really depressed prices,” Robbins said.
The decline in international demand when China dropped out of the market played a crucial role in the drop in milk prices, Novakovic said.
In addition to China reducing its demand, Robbins said, a few processing plant closures reduced the number of outlets for farmers or the cooperatives that represent them. Chobani opened a processing plant in Idaho and cut its production in New York, Robbins said. The Muller Quaker Dairy plant in Batavia closed in early 2016.
“You had a perfect storm of events,” Robbins said.
Farmers, however, continued producing enough milk for a demand that no longer existed at the time, pushing the price they received down and flooding the market.
The amount of milk handlers in the Northeast received from producers in 2016 reportedly exceeded 27 billion pounds for the first time, according to the Northeast 2016 bulletin. Milk pooled in the marketing area was slightly more than 26 billion pounds in 2015, about 25.8 billion in 2014 and 25.4 billion in 2013, according to each year’s respective report.
Robbins said many farmers purchased additional cows and expanded production around 2014 to take advantage of the increasing milk prices. Some, however, have continued buying more cows and increasing production just to keep up with the costs of their operations.
State Department of Agriculture and Markets Commissioner Richard Ball said state milk production is up 5 percent while exports have declined by 2 to 3 percent.
“There’s a whole lot of milk being made and not enough homes to go to for it to be processed,” said John D. Peck, a Jefferson County legislator who owns Peck Homestead Farm in Carthage.
Jon Greenwood, owner of a large Potsdam dairy farm, said dairy prices have always been determined by the relationship between supply and demand.
Until a few decades ago, milk prices fluctuated based solely on what was happening in a particular region of the country.
However, today, local farmers can be impacted by supply and demand changes around the world, according to Greenwood, who is president of the St. Lawrence County Farm Bureau.
“We never used to export, but we were up to exporting 18 percent,” he said.
Giving an example, he said a lessening demand for U.S. milk products from China and Southeast Asia contributed to the drop in milk prices that started about two years ago.
In particular, China was importing a lot of powdered milk used in baby formula.
”That market has gone down significantly,” Greenwood said.
While international demand dropped, Ronald Kuck, livestock educator for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County, said demand for dairy products per capita has increased since 2015. The problem, Kuck said, still lies with overproduction.
“Supply and demand,” he said. “It’s that simple.”
Novakovic said cutting production could balance supply and demand, but few, if any, producers would cut down their own production.“No farmer would rationally cut back the number of cows they’re milking,” Peck said. “That’s the main thing we can control to be able to get back more.”
KEEPING UP
Farmers still need to keep up with their routine expenses despite earning less, and while some farmers’ costs have remained stable, others’ expenses have risen.
Robbins said he recently had an in-depth analysis conducted to review his expenses from 2012 to 2017.
He said costs including labor, insurance, workers compensation, health insurance, utilities and technical supplies all increased from the five-year-period. At the same time, his cost for feed remained stable and the cost of fuel decreased.
“What we found was those cost-of-production increases are centered around a lot of things we don’t have control over,” he said.
While Peck said feed and supply expenses have remained relatively stable, he has to pay more for his family’s health insurance.
Beyer said many of her costs, including veterinary bills, have climbed in recent years.
“We basically are just kind of surviving,” she said.
Kuck said farmers typically plan five years in advance, including what upgrades and practices to implement.
Farms that evolve by investing in more efficient equipment, cow comfort and infrastructure will survive in the industry, Kuck said. The past few years, however, have pushed dairy farmers to adjust those plans, accommodate for decreased cash flow, and prioritize.
“They just can’t do as much as they would like to do,” he said.
Wood said he wanted to expand his feed storage and build a new garage, but lower revenue in recent years has halted those plans.
Earning less revenue also has prevented the Beyer family from upgrading or replacing equipment, Amy Beyer said. The family, instead, has to predominantly repair equipment by themselves and “pray everything holds out.”
“You want to be a progressive farmer, but you can’t,” she said. “Your hands are tied.”
Reduction in investments on the farm not only hinders dairy operations, but impacts several agribusiness sectors in the industry.
New York Farm Bureau President David Fisher, who is also a family owner of Mapleview Dairy in Madrid, said farmers having to cut back their spending brings less revenue to agribusinesses such as machinery, milking equipment and feed suppliers.
“It affects the whole economy,” he said.
Labor expenses have also increased for several dairy farmers, particularly New York farmers who have to compete with other industries as the state minimum wage rises annually. The state minimum wage is set to increase 70 cents every year in areas outside of New York City, Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester counties until it reaches $12.50 on Dec. 31, 2020.
“Who’s going to want to go milk a cow for eight hours a day when they can go flip a burger and make more?” Peck said.
At the same time, farmers nationwide are finding it more challenging to find prospective employees willing to work long hours milking cows and harvesting crops for feed.
Robbins argued that farming provides competitive pay rates when compared to other industries, but hours of hard work deter people from applying for farm jobs. A stigma also surrounds farm labor that leads many
Americans to believe farm work is beneath them, Robbins said.
Novakovic also said farm labor allows little room for breaks and vacations.
“The work is demanding, and frankly, the work is very dirty,” Novakovic said. “It doesn’t matter how much you get paid.”
In response to a lack of interest from American laborers, several farmers hire and rely on migrant workers, a method made difficult under federal regulations.
Krupke said all agriculture in New York relies on a work force made up of legal migrant workers and the ability to hire those workers. Congress, he said, must enact new laws that will make it easier for people from other countries to work at U.S. farms.
Robbins said lawmakers need to create a workable guest program that meets the needs of the industry while maintaining the interests of national security.
“It’s just Washington’s lack of fortitude to make that happen,” Robbins said.
Weather in recent years, including drought conditions last year and excess rainfall in several parts of the country this year, have harmed crop quality and yield for many dairy farmers, which can have adverse effects on cows’ nutrition and reduce production.
Robbins said a cold summer and fall in 2015 lowered his crop quality, the 2016 drought reduced quality and volume and this year’s excess rainfall has drawn insects that have damaged his crops.
Wood said his farm experienced about average weather in 2014 and 2015, but excess heat in 2016 reduced his soybean and hay yield, and excess rainfall this year has inhibited his harvesting plans.
Hot and humid weather at Peck Homestead Farm make cows uncomfortable and heat stressed, Peck said, which reduces production. The 2016 drought dried up the grass in Mr. Peck’s pasture early on, but he said 2015 and this year haven’t inhibited his operations.
“Weather’s always a challenging thing,” he said. “You have no choice but to take what comes. There’s no point complaining about it.”
ADAPTING TO TOUGH TIMES
Farmers are naturally resilient when facing adversity, Ball said, and they haven’t stood idle during recent challenging years. They have continued to adapt by exploring opportunities such as planting new crops and have advanced their education and marketing abilities.
“When adversity comes their way ... they keep going and figure out how to get it done,” he said.
In order to at least break even, Robbins said he pre-sells 50 to 60 percent of his milk, meaning he earns revenue at the current price before having it shipped months later. Milk prices fluctuate monthly, and Robbins said pre-selling his milk allows him to take advantage of months with slightly higher prices.
Farmers like Robbins are also reviewing their bills and deciding what, if any, expenses they can reduce.
When compiling information for the 2016 Northeast Dairy Farm Summary, Farm Credit East staff members found farmers on average earned $15 per cow last year, up from a loss of $30 per cow in 2015, by cutting costs. One example includes a more than $4 decrease in net cost of production from 2014 to $16.79 per hundredweight last year.
“We’re tightening our belts and trying to save money wherever we can,” Fisher said. “Try to get by with whatever you got and make do.”
Despite trying to reduce costs, Novakovic said farmers have to be careful not to let their attempts to cut costs reduce their herd health and, in turn, production. Farmers who stick with their plans typically avoid a loss of production, Novakovic said, which doesn’t provide them with many options for cost reduction.
“Farmers, especially the better ones, develop a plan and stick to it,” he said. “They will continue to do it no matter what happens with these prices … when it’s bad, you just lie down and take a beating and the trick is how resilient you are.”
Farmers must expand and diversify their operations during adverse market conditions, Peck said. Peck has implemented technology that allows him to harvest earlier and mix crop silage in ways that increase its nutritional benefits for his cows. He also said he is trying to sell farm-raised beef.
LOOKING AHEAD
Many farmers and experts believe milk prices will increase slightly this year from 2016, although they will not soon return to the record-breaking prices of three years ago.
Average dairy prices are expected to rise by $2 per hundredweight from last year, according to Farm Credit East, bringing more revenue for farmers. Average blend prices for farmers who have their milk shipped to Northeast handlers has increased from $16.39 per hundredweight in April to $17.53 in June. July prices are not yet available.
“It’s going to remain a sober year,” Mr. Ball said, “a gradual improvement.”
China has returned to the market with a demand for more dairy exports, Novakovic said, and other countries, including Vietnam, are providing additional markets for U.S. dairy products. Robbins also said the U.S. prices for products have become more competitive in the international marketplace.
“That’s sort of the light at the end of the tunnel,” he said.
Companies have also expressed plans to open new processing plants, Novakovic said. HP Hood recently purchased the Muller Quaker Dairy plant in Batavia. . Wood also said Dairy Farmers of America are investing in opening new plants.
The lack of milk processing plants in the Northeast has contributed to a surplus of milk that also drives down prices, Greenwood said.
“We have more milk than we have processors,” he said. “It’s critical that we get some plants built to take this milk supply.”
Krupke said dairy pricing should slightly increase so long as the economy, weather and overseas demand remain constant and manageable.
“I think they’re going to be constant,” he said. “I think we’re on this slow incline.”
Not all farmers, however, are as optimistic about the projected trends.
Peck said he believes the price will not increase, but will at least not decline any longer. Beyer said whatever increase in earnings she receives will go straight toward hauling fees.
“I almost feel like I’ve lost hope,” she said.
Officials at the state and federal levels have implemented programs and policies in an attempt to remediate adverse industry conditions, and their efforts are ongoing.
Ball said the state introduced the Climate Resilient Farming Grant program this year to help fund projects that help farmers deal with adverse weather like droughts.
Ball and his office have also pitched state agriculture products, including dairy, to Canada and Mexico and worked with the state Department of Labor to create more skilled laborers for agriculture by doubling the number of agriculture teachers and increasing aid for agricultural education.
U.S. Sens. Charles E. Schumer, and Kirsten E. Gillibrand, both D-N.Y., are looking to improve conditions for dairy farmers through the 2018 Farm Bill.
Sen. Schumer said in a statement that Congress, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, farmers and processors must work together to help farmers navigate volatile price fluctuations through a comprehensive policy for the upcoming Farm Bill.
“Simply put, the dairy price challenge is wreaking havoc across upstate farms, and I am devoting a lot of time and energy preparing for the 2018 Farm Bill, which must include flexible and sufficient support for the 21st century family dairy farmer,” Sen. Schumer said in a statement.
Sen. Gillibrand said in a statement that she wants to reform the Margin Protection Program for dairy producers, which was established in the 2014 Farm Bill to provide farmers with financial assistance when the difference between the price of milk and feed costs falls below a farmer’s selected coverage level.
She said the program hasn’t helped farmers when the price they are paid for their milk fell below the cost of production, and they should return to a system that uses a “reasonable base price” that adjusts to inflation.
“I plan to pressure (USDA) to use all of the tools at their disposal, like refunding premium payments, making useful decision tools, and joining me as I go out and talk to dairy farmers that struggle to make ends,” she said in a statement. “We owe our farmers more than a failed program and must do what we can to make things right.”
U.S. Rep. Elise M. Stefanik, R-Willsboro, has also joined others in Congress in a call for reforms to the Margin Protection Program, including premium rate reduction and ensuring farmers have a viable safety net, according to a news release.
Tom Flanagin, a spokesman for Stefanik, said in a statement that she also sponsored the Family Farm Relief Act, meant to expand the H-2A agricultural visa program to dairy farmers.
With 40 years of dairy farming experience under his belt, Greenwood is confident the milk price situation will eventually stabilize.
“Prices are going to go up, it’s just a matter of when and how much,” he said.
Sunday, September 3, 2017
Weather Extremes Show Need for Water and Soil Conservation Practices
From EMPIRE FARM & DAIRY magazine
By MARC HELLER
hellmarc@gmail.com
There’s an old saying that if you have one foot in a bucket of boiling water, and the other in a bucket of ice water, on average you feel about right.
New York farmers may be wishing that expression applied to agriculture. A year after one of the worst droughts in a generation, heavy rains threaten to dilute many farmers’ profits.
Parts of northern and western New York have seen several months in a row of above-normal rainfall, which cut into the planting season and has delayed cutting of hay. And while state agriculture officials aren’t calling the season a disaster, they say production is likely to suffer in some areas.
The contrast in moisture is a reminder, too, they say, of the value of conservation measures that preserve the soil — and which federal and state programs are meant to promote — and of the benefits of growing as wide a variety of crops as possible.
“We’re a resilient lot,” said state Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets Richard Ball, who’s far from declaring the season a flop. “It takes a whole year to make a year.”
Ball, a farmer in Schoharie, said some farmers couldn’t plant their preferred crops. Dairy farmers and others have adjusted by turning to alternatives, he said. New York farmers planted only about 75 percent of the typical acreage of potatoes, for instance, and acreage is down for grain corn, a key feed for dairy cattle, he said.
Weather statistics tell some of the story.
Weather stations in Glens Falls, Watertown and Rochester all show wetter-than-average rainfall from spring through July.
Watertown had 6.18 inches of rain in June alone, roughly double the normal amount, the National Weather Service reported. Glens Falls saw more than five and a half inches in July, following above-average rain in June, May and April.
“We’ve really done a one-eighty,” said Steve Ammerman, spokesman for New York Farm Bureau. “Things are a bit behind this year.”
Spring rains also kept the soil cooler, later into the season, Ammerman said, which cuts into production of some crops. But the news hasn’t been entirely discouraging; conditions have improved in several areas, and farmers who have well-drained land have fared all right, he said.
Although last year was exceedingly dry, this year’s downpours may be part of a longer trend, said Jonathan Negley, district manager for the Tompkins County Soil and Water Conservation District.
Rain appears to fall harder and in shorter periods than in years past, he said, meaning fields that once took five or eight inches of rain in 24 hours must absorb it in half an hour instead, which often isn’t possible.
“This is just a reality that we are all going to have to face in the future, and now,” Negley said. “Sometimes it is just unrealistic to design structures at this demanding level, so we just put in extra layers of protection or bypasses during those heavy flows.”
Officials at soil and water conservation districts — which are county-level offices that work in cooperation with state and federal agencies — continue to encourage the practices they have for years, including keeping water clean, collecting excess rainwater where possible so it can be used in dry periods, and maintaining healthy soil that’s better at holding moisture, Negley said.
That’s a more challenging mission in areas where land is being developed and paved surfaces create runoff, Negley said. Collecting the excess water becomes more important in those areas, he said.
On farms, practices such as no-till and cover crops are increasing and help the land withstand both heavy rain and drought, Ammerman said.
Programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture promote those measures and in many cases require farmers to have conservation plans. In the 2014 farm bill, Congress reinstated conservation compliance as a condition for crop insurance, and the issue is likely to come up again in the farm bill’s renewal in 2018.
Although much of the government investment in conservation comes from Washington, state agencies in New York play a role.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration has promoted a $300 million environmental protection fund, and Ball said his department prepared a resource guide for farmers outlining the assistance available in the case of federal disaster declarations, which applied to much of the state during last year’s drought.
In addition, Ball said, past floods have taught officials about the importance of maintaining culverts along roads in farm country. The experience with Tropical Storm Irene in 2011 revealed the shortcomings of those drainage systems, he said.
“Every one of them is a choke point, potentially,” Ball said.
By MARC HELLER
hellmarc@gmail.com
There’s an old saying that if you have one foot in a bucket of boiling water, and the other in a bucket of ice water, on average you feel about right.
New York farmers may be wishing that expression applied to agriculture. A year after one of the worst droughts in a generation, heavy rains threaten to dilute many farmers’ profits.
Parts of northern and western New York have seen several months in a row of above-normal rainfall, which cut into the planting season and has delayed cutting of hay. And while state agriculture officials aren’t calling the season a disaster, they say production is likely to suffer in some areas.
The contrast in moisture is a reminder, too, they say, of the value of conservation measures that preserve the soil — and which federal and state programs are meant to promote — and of the benefits of growing as wide a variety of crops as possible.
“We’re a resilient lot,” said state Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets Richard Ball, who’s far from declaring the season a flop. “It takes a whole year to make a year.”
Ball, a farmer in Schoharie, said some farmers couldn’t plant their preferred crops. Dairy farmers and others have adjusted by turning to alternatives, he said. New York farmers planted only about 75 percent of the typical acreage of potatoes, for instance, and acreage is down for grain corn, a key feed for dairy cattle, he said.
Weather statistics tell some of the story.
Weather stations in Glens Falls, Watertown and Rochester all show wetter-than-average rainfall from spring through July.
Watertown had 6.18 inches of rain in June alone, roughly double the normal amount, the National Weather Service reported. Glens Falls saw more than five and a half inches in July, following above-average rain in June, May and April.
“We’ve really done a one-eighty,” said Steve Ammerman, spokesman for New York Farm Bureau. “Things are a bit behind this year.”
Spring rains also kept the soil cooler, later into the season, Ammerman said, which cuts into production of some crops. But the news hasn’t been entirely discouraging; conditions have improved in several areas, and farmers who have well-drained land have fared all right, he said.
Although last year was exceedingly dry, this year’s downpours may be part of a longer trend, said Jonathan Negley, district manager for the Tompkins County Soil and Water Conservation District.
Rain appears to fall harder and in shorter periods than in years past, he said, meaning fields that once took five or eight inches of rain in 24 hours must absorb it in half an hour instead, which often isn’t possible.
“This is just a reality that we are all going to have to face in the future, and now,” Negley said. “Sometimes it is just unrealistic to design structures at this demanding level, so we just put in extra layers of protection or bypasses during those heavy flows.”
Officials at soil and water conservation districts — which are county-level offices that work in cooperation with state and federal agencies — continue to encourage the practices they have for years, including keeping water clean, collecting excess rainwater where possible so it can be used in dry periods, and maintaining healthy soil that’s better at holding moisture, Negley said.
That’s a more challenging mission in areas where land is being developed and paved surfaces create runoff, Negley said. Collecting the excess water becomes more important in those areas, he said.
On farms, practices such as no-till and cover crops are increasing and help the land withstand both heavy rain and drought, Ammerman said.
Programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture promote those measures and in many cases require farmers to have conservation plans. In the 2014 farm bill, Congress reinstated conservation compliance as a condition for crop insurance, and the issue is likely to come up again in the farm bill’s renewal in 2018.
Although much of the government investment in conservation comes from Washington, state agencies in New York play a role.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration has promoted a $300 million environmental protection fund, and Ball said his department prepared a resource guide for farmers outlining the assistance available in the case of federal disaster declarations, which applied to much of the state during last year’s drought.
In addition, Ball said, past floods have taught officials about the importance of maintaining culverts along roads in farm country. The experience with Tropical Storm Irene in 2011 revealed the shortcomings of those drainage systems, he said.
“Every one of them is a choke point, potentially,” Ball said.
Excessive Rainfall May Hinder Quality, Yields of Many Crops
From EMPIRE FARM & DAIRY magazine
By MARCUS WOLF
MWOLF@WDT.NET
Farmers in the Northeast are bracing for a loss of crops and a reduction in quality after months of heavy rainfall and cooler temperatures.
“It’s just been a rough year for everyone who’s trying to grow anything out in the field,” said Michael Hunter, a field crop specialist for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson and Lewis counties.
Dairy farmers with oversaturated fields across the state likely will experience lower yields for their corn crops this year, Hunter said.
Jon Greenwood, a Canton dairy farmer and president of the St. Lawrence County Farm Bureau, said several farmers were forced to plant their corn late, and the weather and rainfall have delayed its growth.
If the corn doesn’t mature before the frost, Greenwood, who owns Greenwood Dairy Farm with his wife Linda, said farmers could lose some of their yields.
“(Even) if it turns out right for the rest of the season, some of the fields are never going to be able to turn around or reach maturity,” said Joseph Lawrence, a dairy forage systems specialist with the Cornell PRO-DAIRY program.
Douglas Shelmidine, co-owner of Sheland Farms in the town of Ellisburg, said the rainy weather earlier this year delayed him from planting his corn by three weeks, and the recent rainfall has oversaturated some of the acreage for his corn crop. Whether the corn matures in time before the frost will determine the impact to its nutritional quality, he said.
“I’m not losing sleep over quality just yet,” he said.
For soybeans, Lawrence said the nutritional quality will remain stable so long as the plants can fully mature, although some farmers might harvest smaller beans due to the lack of sun and lower temperatures. Farmers also may be able to avoid significant losses in yields should they experience a late frost.
Unlike with corn and other grain crops, the above-average rainfall has provided a sufficient hay yield for several farmers, but the weather has prevented them from harvesting it at times.
Hunter said farmers’ opportunities for harvesting hay at its nutritional peak are narrow, and the heavy rain has prevented them from harvesting at the optimal times, meaning the quality of the crop will most likely decline.
Lawrence said a drop in hay quality likely would result in a drop in milk production, unless farmers decide to purchase supplements to maintain the nutritional quality of their feed.
“We missed a lot of optimal times for harvesting our hay crop at the times we would like to,” Hunter said.
John Wagner, a field supervisor with New York Farm Bureau, said recent showers have delayed crop growers, including dairy farmers, in Oswego County from harvesting their hay for dry hay silage on time due to excessive moisture in the ground. Those farmers, he said, will have hay with “quality (that) has been severely degraded.”
Wagner also said excessive rainfall in the spring prevented Oswego County farmers from planting their corn and soybeans at the time they wanted.
“So that’s going to affect the yield and quality as we get toward the harvest (in the fall),” he said. The above-average rainfall in the past four months also has delayed the planting of some farmers’ vegetables and hurt the quality of some of their produce.
In addition to setting the planting of some of his vegetables back three weeks, costing him three weeks in sales, Jay Canzonier, who owns North Branch Farms in Belleville, said the excess rain has forced him to cull a larger percentage of his tomatoes and throw away about two-thirds of the cucumbers he and his staff pick.
Every other year, Canzonier said his vegetables experience rapid growth, a growth they haven’t achieved due to the recent weather.
The rain and cold also have brought the risk of disease spreading through crops and produce, but Canzonier said he is taking measures to prevent disease from reaching his produce.
Despite recent conditions, Canzonier said he still has sufficient produce for sale, including bell peppers, sweet corn, lettuce and tomatoes.
“There is a lot of good stuff out there for people to grab,” Canzonier said.
Chris Bush, who operates Bush Gardens in Denmark with her husband, Loren, said the recent weather has cost her about a quarter of her crops. With fewer vegetables to sell, Bush said she was unable to participate in the Lowville Farmers Market this year, but she still was able to sell produce at the Watertown and Carthage farmers markets.
Bush also said some of her cucumbers have died, some of her tomatoes are still green and small, some of her cauliflower plants have black spots, and some of her potatoes are too small. The tomatoes and cucumbers she planted in her three high tunnels, however, “look decent” and make up the majority of the produce at the farmers markets.
“You just have to wait and see what happens and hope you can harvest what you planted,” Bush said.
Dick DeGraff, who owns Grindstone Farm in Pulaski, said he believes he lost 30 to 40 percent of his produce so far this season from the above average rainfall, including some that were “just plain waterlogged.”
Most of the produce he said he planted inside his high tunnels was fine, but he was worried about the wet weather bringing fungal diseases.
“We haven’t been able to cultivate many of our crops,” he said. “We can actually handle no rain, but we can’t handle too much rain.”
DeGraff also said he and his staff haven’t been able to pick blueberries when they ripen due to the excess rain.
“I’m seeing a lot of soft fruit. I think (the weather has) damaged the fruit,” he said. “After this last weekend, the fruit quality has diminished significantly.”
George Krul, who owns Stoney Meadow Farm in Oswego, said he lost about 25 percent of his produce from the rain, which runs down the hills into some of the fields where he has planted pumpkins, sweet corn, squash and gourds. Some of his pumpkins also were affected by fungal infections and blight, he said.
Krul, however, said produce he planted in well-drained soil, including his tomatoes, was not affected.
“Anything that’s on well-drained ground seems to have a better chance,” he said.
By MARCUS WOLF
MWOLF@WDT.NET
Farmers in the Northeast are bracing for a loss of crops and a reduction in quality after months of heavy rainfall and cooler temperatures.
“It’s just been a rough year for everyone who’s trying to grow anything out in the field,” said Michael Hunter, a field crop specialist for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson and Lewis counties.
Dairy farmers with oversaturated fields across the state likely will experience lower yields for their corn crops this year, Hunter said.
Jon Greenwood, a Canton dairy farmer and president of the St. Lawrence County Farm Bureau, said several farmers were forced to plant their corn late, and the weather and rainfall have delayed its growth.
If the corn doesn’t mature before the frost, Greenwood, who owns Greenwood Dairy Farm with his wife Linda, said farmers could lose some of their yields.
“(Even) if it turns out right for the rest of the season, some of the fields are never going to be able to turn around or reach maturity,” said Joseph Lawrence, a dairy forage systems specialist with the Cornell PRO-DAIRY program.
Douglas Shelmidine, co-owner of Sheland Farms in the town of Ellisburg, said the rainy weather earlier this year delayed him from planting his corn by three weeks, and the recent rainfall has oversaturated some of the acreage for his corn crop. Whether the corn matures in time before the frost will determine the impact to its nutritional quality, he said.
“I’m not losing sleep over quality just yet,” he said.
For soybeans, Lawrence said the nutritional quality will remain stable so long as the plants can fully mature, although some farmers might harvest smaller beans due to the lack of sun and lower temperatures. Farmers also may be able to avoid significant losses in yields should they experience a late frost.
Unlike with corn and other grain crops, the above-average rainfall has provided a sufficient hay yield for several farmers, but the weather has prevented them from harvesting it at times.
Hunter said farmers’ opportunities for harvesting hay at its nutritional peak are narrow, and the heavy rain has prevented them from harvesting at the optimal times, meaning the quality of the crop will most likely decline.
Lawrence said a drop in hay quality likely would result in a drop in milk production, unless farmers decide to purchase supplements to maintain the nutritional quality of their feed.
“We missed a lot of optimal times for harvesting our hay crop at the times we would like to,” Hunter said.
John Wagner, a field supervisor with New York Farm Bureau, said recent showers have delayed crop growers, including dairy farmers, in Oswego County from harvesting their hay for dry hay silage on time due to excessive moisture in the ground. Those farmers, he said, will have hay with “quality (that) has been severely degraded.”
Wagner also said excessive rainfall in the spring prevented Oswego County farmers from planting their corn and soybeans at the time they wanted.
“So that’s going to affect the yield and quality as we get toward the harvest (in the fall),” he said. The above-average rainfall in the past four months also has delayed the planting of some farmers’ vegetables and hurt the quality of some of their produce.
In addition to setting the planting of some of his vegetables back three weeks, costing him three weeks in sales, Jay Canzonier, who owns North Branch Farms in Belleville, said the excess rain has forced him to cull a larger percentage of his tomatoes and throw away about two-thirds of the cucumbers he and his staff pick.
Every other year, Canzonier said his vegetables experience rapid growth, a growth they haven’t achieved due to the recent weather.
The rain and cold also have brought the risk of disease spreading through crops and produce, but Canzonier said he is taking measures to prevent disease from reaching his produce.
Despite recent conditions, Canzonier said he still has sufficient produce for sale, including bell peppers, sweet corn, lettuce and tomatoes.
“There is a lot of good stuff out there for people to grab,” Canzonier said.
Chris Bush, who operates Bush Gardens in Denmark with her husband, Loren, said the recent weather has cost her about a quarter of her crops. With fewer vegetables to sell, Bush said she was unable to participate in the Lowville Farmers Market this year, but she still was able to sell produce at the Watertown and Carthage farmers markets.
Bush also said some of her cucumbers have died, some of her tomatoes are still green and small, some of her cauliflower plants have black spots, and some of her potatoes are too small. The tomatoes and cucumbers she planted in her three high tunnels, however, “look decent” and make up the majority of the produce at the farmers markets.
“You just have to wait and see what happens and hope you can harvest what you planted,” Bush said.
Dick DeGraff, who owns Grindstone Farm in Pulaski, said he believes he lost 30 to 40 percent of his produce so far this season from the above average rainfall, including some that were “just plain waterlogged.”
Most of the produce he said he planted inside his high tunnels was fine, but he was worried about the wet weather bringing fungal diseases.
“We haven’t been able to cultivate many of our crops,” he said. “We can actually handle no rain, but we can’t handle too much rain.”
DeGraff also said he and his staff haven’t been able to pick blueberries when they ripen due to the excess rain.
“I’m seeing a lot of soft fruit. I think (the weather has) damaged the fruit,” he said. “After this last weekend, the fruit quality has diminished significantly.”
George Krul, who owns Stoney Meadow Farm in Oswego, said he lost about 25 percent of his produce from the rain, which runs down the hills into some of the fields where he has planted pumpkins, sweet corn, squash and gourds. Some of his pumpkins also were affected by fungal infections and blight, he said.
Krul, however, said produce he planted in well-drained soil, including his tomatoes, was not affected.
“Anything that’s on well-drained ground seems to have a better chance,” he said.
Calves Rescued From Flooding in Tioga County
By DEBRA J. GROOM
dgroom@wdt.net
From EMPIRE FARM & DAIRY magazine
The wet weather of this growing season hasn’t been tough only on those with crops in the ground and hay to bale.
Some of God’s living creatures also have been put through the wringer with all this rain.
At Engelbert Farms in Nichols, Tioga County, the rain from July 24 nearly drowned their 20 calves. The little ones were snug and warm and safe in their calf hutches when the Wappasening Creek began to overflow.
“We got a call at 2:15 a.m. that it looked like our calves were drowning,” Lisa Engelbert said via Facebook. “We called our sons, and headed down. When I got down there, my heart sank — I thought we had lost all of the calves in hutches. I shined my spotlight out and saw that they were alive, but some were struggling to keep their heads above water.”
Engelbert said while her farm received only about 2.5 inches of rain, upstream the Wappasening Creek watershed saw about 6 inches of rain in a very short period of time.
“My son, John arrived and he started unhooking calves and putting them into the back of his truck. I was in the truck trying to keep them towards the front of the truck bed,” Engelbert said. “Kevin hooked up the cattle trailer and we started putting calves in there. Several of the guys who work on the farm arrived soon after, but it took our son, Joe, about 45 minutes to get here because so many roads and bridges were washed out.”
“The calves were all rescued and taken to Rob Moore’s organic farm up on the hill. The guys loaded 15 organic piglets as a precaution and took them to Kittle’s organic farm on the hill,” she said. “We lost three calves to pneumonia due to getting water in their lungs, but the rest are doing well. The pigs and calves came back home the next day.”
The flash flooding was from the Wappasening Creek and was an isolated rain event, “so we didn’t have flooding issues from the Susquehanna River,” Engelbert said.
Farms like Engelbert Farms in this area of the Southern Tier have seen the mighty Susquehanna flood numerous times, wreaking havoc on the land. The most recent was Sept. 7, 2011, when Tropical Storm Lee dropped about 18 inches of rain near Nichols.
Meteorologists at that time said the river rose to 26.67 feet in the nearby town of Waverly.
“It came through like a Tsunami,” said Engelbert in a story in Lancaster Farming. During that flood, nearly 400 acres of land, a milkhouse, milking parlor, the house and crop fields were filled with water and mud from the Wappasening Creek and Susquehanna River.
dgroom@wdt.net
From EMPIRE FARM & DAIRY magazine
The wet weather of this growing season hasn’t been tough only on those with crops in the ground and hay to bale.
Some of God’s living creatures also have been put through the wringer with all this rain.
At Engelbert Farms in Nichols, Tioga County, the rain from July 24 nearly drowned their 20 calves. The little ones were snug and warm and safe in their calf hutches when the Wappasening Creek began to overflow.
“We got a call at 2:15 a.m. that it looked like our calves were drowning,” Lisa Engelbert said via Facebook. “We called our sons, and headed down. When I got down there, my heart sank — I thought we had lost all of the calves in hutches. I shined my spotlight out and saw that they were alive, but some were struggling to keep their heads above water.”
Engelbert said while her farm received only about 2.5 inches of rain, upstream the Wappasening Creek watershed saw about 6 inches of rain in a very short period of time.
“My son, John arrived and he started unhooking calves and putting them into the back of his truck. I was in the truck trying to keep them towards the front of the truck bed,” Engelbert said. “Kevin hooked up the cattle trailer and we started putting calves in there. Several of the guys who work on the farm arrived soon after, but it took our son, Joe, about 45 minutes to get here because so many roads and bridges were washed out.”
“The calves were all rescued and taken to Rob Moore’s organic farm up on the hill. The guys loaded 15 organic piglets as a precaution and took them to Kittle’s organic farm on the hill,” she said. “We lost three calves to pneumonia due to getting water in their lungs, but the rest are doing well. The pigs and calves came back home the next day.”
The flash flooding was from the Wappasening Creek and was an isolated rain event, “so we didn’t have flooding issues from the Susquehanna River,” Engelbert said.
Farms like Engelbert Farms in this area of the Southern Tier have seen the mighty Susquehanna flood numerous times, wreaking havoc on the land. The most recent was Sept. 7, 2011, when Tropical Storm Lee dropped about 18 inches of rain near Nichols.
Meteorologists at that time said the river rose to 26.67 feet in the nearby town of Waverly.
“It came through like a Tsunami,” said Engelbert in a story in Lancaster Farming. During that flood, nearly 400 acres of land, a milkhouse, milking parlor, the house and crop fields were filled with water and mud from the Wappasening Creek and Susquehanna River.
Saturday, September 2, 2017
Onondaga County's OnFarmFest Set for Sept. 9
By DEBRA J. GROOM
dgroom@wdt.net
Onondaga County is planning its second annual OnFarmFest Sept. 9.
Area residents will have the chance to travel around the county and visit seven farms to see what the farmers do and how their food and fiber are grown.
Included are two dairy farms, a vegetable farm, a grain and vegetable farm, a brewery and hops farm, a beef farm, an orchard and an inner city farm.
Farms are open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Sept. 9.
Farms participating are:
** Brady Farm
150 Ford Ave.
Syracuse
** Fawn Crossing Hops Farm and Local 315 Brewing Co.
3160 Warners Road
Warners
** Emmi & Sons, Inc.
1482 W. Genesee Road (Route 370)
Lysander
** Paladino and Carley Farms
3149 Sweet Road
Pompey
** Silver Spring Farm
4461 W. Seneca Turnpike
Onondaga
** Navarino Orchard
3655 Route 20
Navarino
** Lucky 13 All Natural Red Angus Beef
790 Markham Hollow
Tully
** River Ridge Dairy
7197 River Road
Memphis
** Greenwood Winery
6475 Collamer Road
East Syracuse
dgroom@wdt.net
Onondaga County is planning its second annual OnFarmFest Sept. 9.
Area residents will have the chance to travel around the county and visit seven farms to see what the farmers do and how their food and fiber are grown.
Included are two dairy farms, a vegetable farm, a grain and vegetable farm, a brewery and hops farm, a beef farm, an orchard and an inner city farm.
Farms are open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Sept. 9.
Farms participating are:
** Brady Farm
150 Ford Ave.
Syracuse
** Fawn Crossing Hops Farm and Local 315 Brewing Co.
3160 Warners Road
Warners
** Emmi & Sons, Inc.
1482 W. Genesee Road (Route 370)
Lysander
** Paladino and Carley Farms
3149 Sweet Road
Pompey
** Silver Spring Farm
4461 W. Seneca Turnpike
Onondaga
** Navarino Orchard
3655 Route 20
Navarino
** Lucky 13 All Natural Red Angus Beef
790 Markham Hollow
Tully
** River Ridge Dairy
7197 River Road
Memphis
** Greenwood Winery
6475 Collamer Road
East Syracuse