Seven working farms in the Hudson Valley are now protected from development thanks to combined support from the federal Farm and Ranchlands Protection Program, Scenic Hudson, Dutchess County, the Town of Red Hook, the Columbia Land Conservancy and the Dutchess Land Conservancy. 1,265 acres of farmland have been protected with conservation easements at a cost [...]
The Hudson Valley Food Hubs Initiative: Research Findings and Recommendations has just been released. The report explores escalating distribution of local foods, supporting farm economies and strengthening Hudson Valley regional food systems and communities through food hubs. The report is spearheaded by the Local Economies Project with a research team led by Sarah Brannen and Columbia [...]
Ever hear the saying–“Our kids don’t know where their food comes from, they think it comes from the grocery store?” Today, though more people shop at farmers markets, they still don’t know where their food comes from – local farmland. And, we are losing farmland fast! In New York we have lost 4,500 farms, since [...]
Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the 2013-14 State Budget yesterday at the University at Buffalo. The budget passed both houses of the New York State Legislature on March 29. The budget provides $13 million, an increase of $1 million, for the state’s Farmland Protection Program, which funds the purchase of agricultural conservation easements on farmland and [...]
The No Farms No Food Rally took place during heated budget negotiations between Governor Cuomo and the Legislature. Sixteen lobby teams met with over seventy state legislators. “We were joined by young farmers, mature farmers, land trusts and conservation organizations, hunger relief and public health advocates and local food groups to tell our elected officials [...]
