The agricultural industry means so much to our state – helping grow our economy, providing important jobs and supplying our families with fresh, local food. The 36,000 farmers who call New York home are essential to the health of our communities.^[1]

That’s why it’s important to support our farmers by making a conscious effort to buy food that’s grown and produced locally.

Fortunately, it’s the time of year when it’s easy to show our support for local farmers and local food by visiting one of the many farmers’ markets.

There are many markets in our area, including the CNY Regional Market at 2100 Park St. in Syracuse, open Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., May through November; and the Fayetteville Farmers Market, located at the Fayetteville Town Center shopping mall, which is open Thursdays from noon to 6 p.m., May 19 through Oct. 13. In addition to selling meat, produce and dairy products directly to consumers, these markets also offer a wide variety of specialty and homemade items including baked goods, syrup, jams and sauce.

As a member of the Assembly Agriculture Committee, I’ve worked hard to support family farms. I’ve also worked to increase markets for all sorts of farm products and locally produced foods.

Recently, I introduced a new bill that would allow small-scale food processors to purchase a state food processing license at a reduced cost, lowering the barriers for these small-business owners hoping to enter the marketplace (A.10009). The current licensing fee is $400 for all businesses, regardless of size. My bill would reduce that cost to $175 for businesses with less square footage and fewer facilities. By offering a tiered license system, we can help small-scale producers get started, foster economic growth and provide more locally-sourced food products for our families.

I’m also co-sponsoring a bill that waives the licensing fee for small cooperative kitchen incubator facilities for two years (A.7650). These incubators allow food entrepreneurs with a great recipe or product to develop that product and get it to market without taking on the expense of their own facility.

I believe these two bills together would tap the creativity of the many potential food entrepreneurs in our area, while meeting the public desire for locally-sourced foods, and supporting local farmers. These are just some of the ways we can support farms and grow our economy.

So, I hope to see you at one of the local farmers markets this spring. And, as always, if you have any questions or concerns about this or any other community issue, please don’t hesitate to contact me at StirpeA@nyassembly.gov or by calling 315-452-1115.

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