Photo by Phil Mansfield.
“How much are you willing to pay for your produce?” was one of the many questions raised at the Mohonk Consultations forum, Supporting Farmers and Farmworkers in the Hudson Valley, held on Sunday, April 7. The forum gathered 65 participants at the Mohonk Mountain House Parlor to learn and explore possibilities to advance sustainable and just farming in the Hudson Valley.
Sales Down at Farmers Markets
“If Rondout Valley Growers Association (RVGA) doesn’t find markets to sell what our farmers have produced, then corporate interests in food markets will dominate even more,” said panelist and RVGA board member Matt Igoe. “Along with the threats of climate change and development pressure, farmers are facing changes in consumer interests. We need to focus on marketing,” he added.
New Paltz farmer and panelist Kira Kinney concurred. “Farm market sales are terrible.” Kinney, who grows and distributes food through Evolutionary Organics Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), expressed concern about the changing and saturated market that is shifting toward convenience. “The rise in home delivery systems like Blue Apron, Misfits Market, and Whole Foods/Amazon is not helping us.” She speculated that shoppers may find weekend farm markets to be increasingly inconvenient. “And when it’s raining, our work is the same, but sales might drop by as much as half.”
Farm Inspections Present Roadblock
Corporate markets provide opportunity for wider distribution of farm products, but present different challenges. Panelist Kevin Terr of Red Barn Produce, a Highland-based wholesale buyer and distributer, cited the arduous inspection process by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) as an expensive roadblock for many small farms. “The safety inspection tests that farms need to pass take a toll on the farmer.” Inspections are required to sell local farm products to more commercial markets like school kitchens and grocery stores. “If [the USDA] made it easier for farmers to get inspected, they could sell more produce.”
Forum attendee and grower Michael McDonough of Tongore Brook Farm in Stone Ridge agreed. “Grocery stores are highly efficient delivery systems for farm products; but getting in is a lot of work. The inspection requirements are redundant and time-intensive.” He added that once “in” the store, “the success of your sales depends on how the produce is presented, which section it’s sold in.” McDonough would have liked to see produce managers from local stores like Hannaford and Shop Rite at the event.
Farmworker System is Broken
Forum panelists also discussed opportunities to better support farmworkers in the Hudson Valley. “Farmworkers are still the ones who are brown, poor, and have no voice in the political realm,” said panelist Richard Witt of the Rural Migrant Ministry. “The starting point of this conversation needs to be that the system isn’t working.”
The Rural Migrant Ministry works to advance policies that provide equality and justice to farmworkers. “We stand with farmworkers to change the laws that are affecting them, so their voices can be heard, so they feel welcome,” said Witt. “We do that by being provocative about transportation, school, and health care systems, and by calling attention to the farmworkers who are missing from those conversations.” Witt noted that there are positive models in the Hudson Valley. “Folks like Roxbury Farm [in Columbia County] are determined to pay workers more and give them rights, in collaboration with customers agreeing to pay more.”
Support for Farmworker Families
The themes of transportation and school were repeated by panelist Maryellen Whittington-Couse of the Mid-Hudson Migrant Education Program. “Most farmworker families are from Mexico; many have moved here in the last 12 months. They are socially isolated and don’t interact with non-migrant families. They lack their own transportation or access to public transportation.” The Migrant Education Program supports the families in becoming part of their community.
Couse spoke of the “invisible population” – the children of farmworkers and the youth that are agricultural workers themselves. Their lives are disrupted by frequent moves and changing schools, which often lead to low academic performance. The Migrant Education Program strives to achieve quick and smooth enrollment of youth as they transition into new school situations. “We help them get registered, facilitate medical appointments for school-required immunizations, provide school supplies, translate school materials, create summer enrichment opportunities,” said Couse. “We want the youth to meet their potential and have access to everything that is available to them.”
Moving Forward
Following the formal presentations, forum attendees and panelists engaged in productive roundtable discussions to reflect on what was heard and generate ideas for positive change. These ideas, shared at a report-out during the forum, are recorded below. Participants felt strongly that Hudson Valley communities need to be more welcoming to farmworkers and their families. Creative suggestions ranged from multi-lingual signs to transportation assistance, and “Bienvenidos” celebrations of thankfulness for everyone involved in the community food system.
Table Discussion Report Out
What follows are some thoughts articulated or jotted down during the breakout session of our forum regarding concrete ways the Hudson Valley can better acknowledge and support the community of farmers and farmworkers who grow our food.
Barriers exist to farmworkers organizing. Many are undocumented, work long hours, and lack communication options. They don’t have the time or means to organize, and it is very risky for many of them to try. Therefore, it is important for people outside the farmworker community to be made aware of the workers’ issues, organize on their behalf, and take these concerns to Albany.
Welcoming and Celebrating Our Farming Community
In order to foster a community of respect between workers, owners/producers and consumers:
- Special events bringing together and embracing all members, ensure the visibility of workers through Bienvenido festivals, family farm festivals, New Paltz Apple Festival, and focused events at county fairs and festivals
- Consult farmworkers as resources for educational programs at community colleges.
- Create opportunities for workers participate in bilingual educational programs so they can learn more about food and the food supply systems in the Hudson Valley.
Provide better housing for workers by creating a “Habitat for Humanity” type program. Work with local planning boards and building departments to help avoid or lower regulatory barriers. Are there possibilities for mobile housing for those who must relocate?
Language justice: call for more multilingual resources, including signage throughout the community, printed information, and food labeling.
Spread the word about AgHelp, an online/mobile resource for farmers and farmworkers.
UlsterCorps is a good local resource for volunteers wishing to support the farming community. See volunteer opportunities and check the event calendar regularly.
Start a show on Radio Kingston devoted to local agriculture.
Support the rights of immigrants; encourage efforts of farmers to advocate for workers to remain in the U.S. and recognizes the contributions of this critical, skilled labor force.
Supporting the Economy of the Farm Community
Americans have developed the expectation that food should be cheap. We pay a lower portion of our incomes on food than other countries of the world. If that culture could be changed, farmers could get a fair price for their produce and there would be less pressure to keep labor costs low.
Increase awareness on labeling of local foods so that we can all support Farmer’s Pledge, non-GMO, and Fair Labor Practices.
Purchase of development rights from farmers could help preserve farms. Connecting farmers and aspiring farmers with affordable land will help preserve farmers and farmland:
- New York City-owned watershed land is offered for lease at reasonable rates to farmers. A good opportunity and if not exploited, land could fall out of cultivation.
- Create a matching system to connect farmers who are aging out or want to quit more efficiently with potential farmer-buyers
- Create a program where contributed land could be transferred over a period of time based on labor put into working the land—sweat equity.
- Resource: Northeast Farm Access
Look for ways to bridge agritourism and support for farmworkers—farm stays, educational farms such as Phillies Bridge, wine trails, u-pick farms, Restaurant Week, Chronogram, Field Goods. How could these entities solicit material support for farmworkers?
Farm-to-table restaurants—how about an app or program that solicits donations for organizations that support local farmworkers?
Crop insurance, perhaps funded through a box on the New York State tax return.
Support year-round farming as a way to help migrant workers stay in place.
Encourage seasonal menu planning at local institutions to support local food production. Celebrate the food service directors who are buying local produce.
Speak out on immigration, support legislative policies that will support farmworkers and farmers.
Include the produce managers from supermarkets such as Shop Rite, Hannaford, and Topps in these discussions. Big grocery stores are an efficient means to reach new customers and markets for local farmers, but there are inspections needed that require time and money, and sales are influenced by how products are displayed—a responsibility of produce managers.
Expanding Transportation Options for Farmworkers
Public transportation requires more funding and greater range.
Potential alternatives to public transportation for farmworkers and their families:
- Volunteer rideshare
- Possibly a spinoff of 511 Rideshare
- Sponsorship for a collectivo—a van for local transport of farmworker families (possibly through above-mentioned collaboration with wine/u-pick trails)?
The forum built on insights from Mohonk Consultations’ November 2018 conference, Pastures of Plenty? Food, Justice and Labor in the Hudson Valley, drawing on the perspectives and experience of a diverse panel of representatives from local farms, farmworkers, advocates, regional development partners, and supporting organizations, whose participation we gratefully acknowledge:
Matt Igoe, farmer of Hudson Valley Duck Farm, Ferndale, NY
Kira Kinney, Evolutionary Organics CSA
Kevin Terr, Red Barn Produce, Inc., a Mid-Hudson produce buyer and distributor
Maryellen Whittington-Couse, Mid-Hudson Migrant Education Program
Richard Witt, Rural Migrant Ministry