Assemblyman Phil Palmesano (R, C, I-Corning) recently enjoyed a productive tour of South Seneca County farms and agricultural interests. The tour included stops at Morton’s Cattle Barn, Lively Run Goat Farm, Last Kingdom Brewery and Firehouse Distillery, Seneca Iron Works and the Seneca Army Depot.

“It was a privilege to meet with so many wonderful people on this tour who shared their valuable insight on how we can energize the agricultural sector of our economy. This was a chance for me to listen to their concerns and learn from them. I’m more eager than ever to get back to Albany and fight for policies that promote and support our family farms while opposing the expensive mandates and regulations that threaten them,” said Palmesano.

Palmesano noted that the governor and legislators across the state need to place a greater emphasis on creating a favorable economic environment for family farms.

“Our family farms are the heart and soul of our rural communities and our entire state. It is not enough just to preserve them. We also must encourage more investment and grow the entire agricultural sector in New York State. Unfortunately, new mandates and regulations forced upon them at the state level continue to drive up their labor costs and threaten their very survival. It is unprecedented. It’s long past due for the governor to lead and take bold and aggressive steps to decrease the tax and regulatory burden that we’re asking these critical farms to shoulder. They’re an important economic engine for our upstate economy and must be protected and preserved so they can survive and grow,” Palmesano said.

Palmesano was also joined on the tour with representatives of the Seneca County Farm Bureau and Seneca County Cornell Cooperative Extension.