| JUNE 28, 2011 -- Here's some good news for local farms - and local food.
The state legislature has passed a bushel's worth of farm-friendly laws, and the Connecticut Farm Bureau Association is heralding legislators, and the governor, for their good works.
Henry Talmage, the executive director of the voluntary farm bureau organization, welcomes the legislation that he says will benefit dairy farmers, as well as those who buy locally grown foods, students who study agriculture and open-space advocates.
He says his farm bureau worked closely with legislators on the legislation, which creates a more positive business climate for those who work in agriculture in Connecticut.
Don Tuller, the president of the farm bureau who is also a farmer, agrees.
"We were pleased with the way (the legislative session) transpired," says the owner of the Tulmeadow Farm in West Simsbury. "Some things that would have a very positive impact were adopted, and a few things that would have been very negative were turned aside," he says.
Among the legislative items praised by the farm bureau:
• Funding for the Community Investment Act, which will continue to preserve farmland and assist Connecticut dairy farmers with volatile wholesale milk prices.
• Funding for the state's 19 regional agriculture-and-technology programs, which used to be known as "Vo-Ag" programs, ensuring the education of our future farmers.
• One universal health license for all towns for fresh food vendors who go to various farmers' markets around the state, instead of enforcing individual licenses in individual towns.
• The creation of an agriculture council in the executive branch.
• The creation of a state-run timber harvesting account, which would pay for additional state foresters to ensure responsible timber harvesting.
• The creation of a Connecticut Milk Promotion Board, which would educate residents about the importance of milk, and the importance of Connecticut's dairy industry.
• A requirement that municipalities consider the effect on agriculture when they change their plans of development or conservation.
The Connecticut Farm Bureau Association's been around for a long time - since 1919, in fact - and it's based on volunteer leaders. It works on a host of issues, from land-use planning to farmland preservation.
The bureau points out that agriculture is still important to Connecticut, contributing more than $3.5 billion in annual economic output and more than 20,000 jobs.
Farmers, it says, are much-needed stewards of the land, which helps with Connecticut's overall quality of life.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has said that agriculture is important to his administration, and he sees the industry as an area of growth. With the abundance of "buy local" campaigns, which touts local agriculture, maybe the state's agriculture industry will indeed show significant growth in the years ahead.
Tuller, the West Simsbury farmer, points out that his farm - continuously operated as a family-owned farm since 1768 - is an important, if modest, employer in his town. He estimates that seasonal employment in the summer can reach up to 30, and that includes a lot of high schoolers and college students.
Like Talmage, the farm bureau's executive director, Tuller applauds the legislature for its support of agriculture and this year's legislation supporting local farming and local agriculture.
He also credits the state's Department of Agriculture as an important proponent of farmers and farmland through its active marketing and promotion of state agriculture, like its "Connecticut grown" and farm-to-chef initiatives.
"Being in agriculture is extremely challenging," he concedes. "We're appreciative of the fact that there is an engaged (Connecticut) Department of Agriculture." |
