SPOILER ALERT: Butter Sculpture Unveiled for 2017 New York State Fair

New York State Police working the State Fair

The 100th anniversary of the founding of the New York State Police is commemorated in 800 pounds of butter in this year's butter sculpture at the New York State Fair.

The sculpture, done annually by sculptors Jim Victor and Marie Pelton of Conshohocken, Pa., shows two state troopers with a calf named "Trooper" at the Dairy Cow Birthing Center at the fair. The other side of the sculpture shows a trooper helping a child at the fair.

The American Dairy Association North East, which is in charge of the butter sculpture each year, said in 1917, the first assignment for the newly formed New York State Police was the patrol the New York State Fair.

Young ladies from Onondaga County make dairy punch for those at the butter sculpture unveiling Aug. 22. Left in rear is Ruth Siau and front left is Elle McNamara. Right rear (with the larger crown) is county Dairy Princess Noie Skinner and front right is Paige McNamara. The McNamaras and Siau are dairy ambassadors.

The inspiration for the sculpture came from a photo taken in the Dairy Cow Birthing Center in 2016 of troopers Daniel Skiba and Michael Leggio with the newly born calf named "Trooper."

"Dairy farmers are honored to be a part of the New York State Troopers' 100th anniversary celebration," said Audrey Donahoe, of Atrass Farm in Clayville, Oneida County, "Agriculture is the cornerstone of the fair and so is the service provided by the New York State Police. We're proud to share that history."

"The butter sculpture is one of the attractions at the Great New York State Fair that is a must-see!," said Maj. Philip Rougeux of the state police's Troop D in Oneida. The New York State Police are extremely honored to have been chosen by the American Dairy Association North East to be part of the 2017 butter sculpture."

Pelton and victor worked on the sculpture for 10 days, using 800 pounds of salted butter from a plant in Batavia, Genesee County. 

After the fair closes on Labor Day, the sculpture will be taken apart and transported to Noblehurst Farms in Linwood, Livingston County, where it will be recycled in a methane digester -- along with food scraps and cow manure -- to create electricity and liquid fertilizer for crops.

The New York State Fair runs from Wednesday, Aug. 23 through Labor Day. The butter sculpture is in the Dairy Products building.

Farm Bureau Foundation Produces Video Series on Buying Local

The New York Farm Bureau Foundation has a new project that will bring consumers closer to the farmers who produce their food. 

It is launching a new video series entitled “Meet Your Farmer” that the public can view online through the Foundation’s YouTube and social media pages. Links are available on the Foundation’s website at nyfbfoundation.org

The website has also been updated to be smartphone friendly for people looking to view the series on a mobile device or tablet. The Foundation will also include QR codes on its educational brochures and calendar that will increase the accessibility for viewers to watch the videos.

The videos feature New York farm families talking about their farms and their passion for growing food and caring for their land and animals. The project fits into the Foundation’s mission of sowing the seeds of understanding to educate the public about modern day agriculture.

The first farms to be showcased in the series include CY Farms in Elba, NY, McCormick Farms in Bliss, NY, and Orbaker’s Fruit Farm in Williamson, NY. The Foundation will soon add more farms to this ongoing project.

“The New York Farm Bureau Foundation reaches thousands of children and adults every year through its educational programming, and we are pleased to continue telling the stories of New York’s family farms through this new video series," said Farm Bureau President and Foundation Chair David Fisher. 

"It is more important than ever that farmers share what they do and engage with the public to clear up any misunderstanding people may have about agriculture,” said Fisher.

New York Farm Bureau Foundation’s YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCZaYUrOwLZ52h7joV359Yg

Morrisville State College at the New York State Fair

Morrisville State College will have a strong presence again this year at the Great New York State Fair, featuring a handcrafted scale-model canoe, a student-built hot rod, horses and renewable energy and hemp displays.

The fair runs Aug. 23-Sept. 4.

Fairgoers can learn about renewable energy, horses and horsepower inside the Morrisville State College Bartlett Barn near Gate 4 by the Coliseum. Horses from various equine programs will be housed in the building throughout the fair.

The college also will showcase its Mustang car. Students in the college's automotive programs transformed the 1988 Mustang into a 550 horsepower dragster that accelerates to 130 mph in 10 seconds.

New this year in the Morrisville State College building is a handcrafted canoe, a scale model of those being constructed in a new Introduction to Boat Building course at the college.

Visitors to the building also can obtain an array of information about the college and can speak to faculty and staff about the college's program offerings. Morrisville State alumni are encouraged to stop by and access materials to find fellow classmates, enjoy history about the college and catch up on the college's growth and progress.

Morrisville State College Alumni Day at the fair is Aug. 30.

Visitors also can learn more about the hemp industry at the college's display in the SUNY section of the Horticulture Building. Morrisville is leading research in the experimentation of growing hemp as a commercial crop.

The college also will have informational materials in the World of Horses tent, which features a center ring where fairgoers can see horses up close and talk with their owners and handlers.

Nelson Farms, run by the auxiliary corporation of the college, will once again head the Taste NY Marketplace, a retail store offering food products grown and produced in New York state. The marketplace's new location is in the Horticulture Building.

The college's School of Agriculture and Natural Resources will have an exhibit in the FFA Building.

Morrisville State students also will be competing throughout the fair. They will participate in Forestry Day competitions Sept. 2 in the New York Experience Area. They also will show lambs in the beef Cattle Barn on Sept. 2 and will compete in various equine competitions.

Morrisville State College is the only college in North America to compete with a six-horse hitch, which will also be part of the fair parade on opening day, Aug. 23.

Winners Announced for First Ever State Fair Craft Beer Competition

Brooklyn's Threes Brewing Co. earned top honors at the first-ever New York State Craft Beer Competition, winning the Governor's Excelsior Cup. 

Threes Brewing's Pilsner "Vliet" earned gold in the Light Lager category and moved on to win Best in Show. Nineteen beers from breweries across the state earned gold medals. 

Sponsored by the New York State Brewers Association, the official New York State Fair competition featured nearly 40 judges sampling a total of 707 entries in the largest professionally judged craft beer competition held in New York State.   


The New York State Craft Beer Competition was open to any craft brewer located in New York state. Entries were submitted from 143 New York breweries, accounting for nearly half of all licensed breweries in the State.   

Gold, silver, and bronze medal winners were awarded in each of the 20 categories, which include major styles of beer, such as IPAs and Lagers, as well as niche or emerging styles, such as sour beers or fruit and spice beers. Gold medal winners by category are:  

• Light Lager: Threes Brewing Co.'s "Vliet" - Brooklyn
• Wheat Beer: Brewery Ommegang's "Witte" - Cooperstown
• Fruit and Spice Beer: The Peekskill Brewery's "Pinky Up" - Peekskill
• Belgian Farmhouse: Threes Brewing Co.'s "Wandering Bine" - Brooklyn
• Amber and Dark Lagers: Naked Dove Brewing Co.'s "Naked Dove Exposinator Doppelbock" - Canandaigua
• Amber/Red Ale: Seneca Street Brew Pub's "Irish Red Ale" - Manlius 
• Pale Ale: War Horse Brewing Co.'s "Lieutenant Dan IPA" - Geneva 
• American IPA: Good Nature Brewing Co.'s "Blight Buster" - Hamilton
• American IPA Variations: Prison City Brewing's "4 Piece" - Auburn
• American Double IPA: Big Slide Brewery & Public House's "Giant IPA" - Lake Placid
• Porter, Stout and Brown Ale: Stumblin' Monkey Brewing's "Oatmeal Stout" - Victor
• Imperial Stout and Porter: Spider Bite Beer Co.'s "Boris the Spider" - Holbrook 
• Belgian Other: Thin Man's "Hyperballad" - Buffalo
• Strong Ale: Heartland Brewery's "Old Red Nose Special Edition 14" - New York City
• Wild and Sour Ale: Mill House Brewing Co.'s "Citra Bridges"- Poughkeepsie - and Rushing Duck Brewing's "Zingerbier Berliner Weisse" - Chester - tied in this category
• Barrel Aged Sour: Brooklyn Brewery's "Kiwi's Playhouse" - Brooklyn
• Barrel Aged (Non-Sour): Three Heads Brewing's "Baltic Porter Aged in Iron Smoke Whiskey Barrels" - Rochester
• Experimental: Prison City Brewing's "Wham Whams" - Auburn
• New York State Beer: Saint James Brewery's "Saint James Brewery Pomme- Apple Ale" - Holbrook

Chevy Court Concert Lineup for the New York State Fair

ANOTHER UPDATE -- Two more concerts were added Aug. 18 to the Chevy Court lineup.

Reagae performer Stephen Marley will perform at 2 p.m. Aug. 26 while rock favorites Lynyrd Skynyrd will take the Chevy Court stage 1 p.m. Aug. 27.

Here is the full lineup as of Aug. 18:

Chevy Court concerts:
Robert Randolph and the Family Band, 2 p.m. Aug. 23
3 Doors Down, 8 p.m., Aug. 23
The Family Stone, 2 p.m., Aug. 24
Chevelle, 8 p.m., Aug. 24
The Fabulous Thunderbirds, 2 p.m. Aug. 25
The Beach Boys, 7 p.m., Aug. 25
Stephen Marley, 2 p.m., Aug. 26
Symphoria, 8 p.m., Aug. 26
Lynyrd Skynyrd, 1 p.m., Aug. 27
Earth, Wind and Fire, 8 p.m., Aug. 27
Herman’s Hermits, 2 p.m., Aug. 28
Kansas, 8 p.m. Aug. 28
The Marshall Tucker Band, 2 p.m., Aug. 29
Daya, 8 p.m., Aug. 29
Taylor Dayne, 2 p.m., Aug. 30
Bret Michaels, 8 p.m., Aug. 30
Skid Row, 2 p.m., Aug. 31
LeAnn Rimes, 8 p.m., Aug. 31
A Tribe Called Red, 2 p.m., Sept. 1
Blue Oyster Cult, 8 p.m., Sept. 1
DNCE, 8 p.m., Sept. 2
The Spin Doctors, 2 p.m., Sept. 3
Migos, 8 p.m. Sept. 3
UB40, 2 p.m., Sept. 4
Kool & the Gang, 6 p.m., Sept. 4

Law Allows Farm Cideries to Sell to All Licensed Wineries and Cideries

From Assemblyman Bill Magee:

A bill to allow New York farm cideries to sell their products to all licensed wineries and cideries has been signed into law by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
 
Assemblyman Bill Magee, D-Nelson, Madison County, said the bill he wrote will help cideries expand.
 
Prior regulations limited farm cideries to selling their products to other farm cideries, distilleries, wineries and breweries. However, while farm distilleries and farm wineries are additionally able to sell to commercial distilleries and wineries, farm cideries were previously barred from this type of distribution.
 
Magee’s legislation allows farm cideries to sell their products to all licensed wineries and cideries, opening up a whole new market and strengthening local agriculture.
 
“Agriculture is the backbone of our state. We should be doing all we can to cut red tape for producers so that they can grow and flourish,” said Magee, chair of the Assembly Agriculture Committee. “By allowing farm cideries to sell their top-notch goods across the state, we can strengthen these local businesses, boost our economy and help create jobs.”
 
“Opening up more outlets, increasing tasting opportunities and adding products will givev cideries more room to grow and expand,” said Juanita Critz of Critz Farms Brewing & Cider Co. “We look forward to the advantages these additional options will bring to increasing exposure for businesses like ours here at Critz Farms.”

Deadline Extended for Ritchie's Farm Family Survey

A column from state Sen. Patty Ritchie:

New York's farmers work hard to bring the best quality products to their neighbors, tables and kitchens around the state and world.   

As chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, I know it’s important to get feedback from hardworking farmers to identify ways the state can assist in helping to provide them with new opportunities to expand their businesses.

  

In an effort to help support farmers and their operations, I recently launched a “Farm Family Survey” that seeks input on a number of issues, including milk prices, the impact of recent weather and farm expenses that the state could help in offsetting, among others.

The deadline to participate in this survey has been extended to Aug. 31. Those interested in completing a survey can visit my website, ritchie.nysenate.gov, or have one mailed to you by calling my office at (315) 782-3418.

My Farm Family Survey builds on my past efforts to support New York farmers. Earlier this year, I worked for record funding in the new state budget for agriculture — for the third year in a row — totaling $51 million for dozens of programs that seek to bolster the bottom lines of farmers across the state and here in Central and Northern New York.

New York’s farmers are critically important when it comes to providing people with fresh, healthy foods, as well as to supporting our state’s economy. Your feedback on my survey is essential to providing me with the information I need to better advocate for our state’s farmers and help our state’s agriculture industry thrive for generations to come.