News stories tagged with "farming"

(03/09/12) About 300 people showed up for Friday's farm bill forum at North Country Community College in Saranac Lake. The US House Agriculture Committee hearing was one of only 4 to be held outside Washington, DC.

The Farm bill is rewritten every four years--the last time the massive set of regulations was authorized was in 2008. The current farm bill expires in September. more

(03/09/12) The House Agriculture Committee convenes a hearing this morning on the federal Farm Bill at North Country Community College in Saranac Lake.

The hearing is one of only four scheduled for outside Washington DC so far on the bill. It comes at the invitation of Rep. Bill Owens of Plattsburgh. The public is welcome.

See the live webcast via the link below, and hear more this afternoon on All Before Five. more

(03/02/12) Saranac Lake will host one of only four Congressional hearings on the 2012 Farm Bill in the country. The Saranac Lake session will be the only one held in the northeast U.S. this year.

Representative Bill Owens of Plattsburgh calls it a "tremendous opportunity for New York to make its voice heard as Congress crafts the next Farm Bill."

A press release from Owens office says North Country Community College will host the hearing on Friday, March 9. The other three are scheduled in Illinois, Arkansas, and Kansas in the coming weeks. The hearings are meant to gather on-the-ground input from farmers and others about re-authorization of federal agriculture policy, which last happened in 2008.

(03/01/12) The Lake Placid Center for the Arts will host a locally-produced film about local farms tonight (5 pm). Small Farm Rising features three vibrant Adirondack farms that provide food through farmer's markets, retail stores, restaurants and CSAs. Adirondack Harvest coordinator Laurie Davis told Todd Moe more about tonight's event and the film.

(12/30/11) There's no doubt farming's a volatile industry. With grain and gas prices constantly fluctuating, and more and more consumers searching for low prices, it's no wonder the number of farms has dropped. Last summer, NCPR traveled the North Country looking for the next generation of farmers. This week, we're listening back to some of the stories we found.

The key to farming since the 1970s has been to go big with a few cash crops, search out efficiency, utilize technology and produce more from each acre.

Some young farmers want to do it their own way. They want to stay small, avoid mainstream distribution and maybe grow organic. These new farmers face different challenges from their traditional predecessors, but they can't avoid the economics. Steve Knight tackled the knotty subject of farm economics. more

(12/28/11) Today we continue our look back at our series from last summer, Farmers Under 40, with a look at the young people getting into what many consider a dying industry.

Dairy remains one of the biggest overall drivers of the North Country economy. Yet half the dairy farms of twenty years ago are gone today. The average age of a dairy farmer is almost 60 years old. And some years it costs more to milk a cow than you can sell the milk for.

Still, young farmers are going into dairy. And as David Sommerstein reports, they're bringing a sharp business acumen and a passion to the barn. more

(12/27/11) A recent victory for New York's farm leaders has raised concerns about water quality. Dairy and livestock farms produce a lot of manure. Many farmers spread it on to their fields in liquid form.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture had proposed a nationwide ban against spreading manure onto frozen ground. It's now decided against the ban. The Farm Bureau praises the change of mind, but others are concerned about increases in nutrient run-off from fields during spring thaws. more

(12/26/11) This week, we're listening again to a series we produced this summer titled, "Farmers Under 40", a look at the new generation of young farmers in the North Country. The series also celebrates locally grown food: vegetables, fruit, meat and dairy. So, what can you do with raw milk, besides drinking it? Think cheese.

Inspired by Barbara Kingsolver's book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Todd Moe found it's pretty easy to make delicious soft cheese, with no special equipment and just a few key ingredients. He starts with a gallon of raw milk. Forty-five minutes later, he's got a softball sized piece of home made mozzarella. It begins on the farm...

(12/08/11) One of the lead investigators of the recent report on climate change in New York says the heavy storms this spring and summer, and the mild temperatures this fall will not necessarily be the "new normal" for the north country and Adirondacks. But Cornell University climate researcher Arthur DeGaetano says the heavy rainfall and warm weather could be a glimpse into the future.

The report, released late last month by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, is based on the work of more than 50 scientists. It paints a harsh picture of extreme climate events - predicting that upstate New York will have heavier, and more frequent downpours, like those we've seen this year.

The report says the temperature in New York has already warmed 2.4 degrees in the past forty years. It projects a further rise of as much as three degrees by the 2020s, with the temperature steadily warming as much as nine degrees by the 2080s.

DeGaetano says that means northern New York would have a climate more like North Carolina or Georgia. He says the report isn't meant to scare people. It's meant to help them transition along with the climate. DeGaetano says agriculture will be one of the industries most affected. He spoke with Julie Grant.

(12/01/11) The harvest seems like a long time ago. But lots of people are still savoring the fruits of the garden with a technique as old as their great-grandparents.

Canning and preserving fruits and vegetables is enjoying a revival, thanks to the burgeoning foodie and locavore movements.

A group of canners got together in Canton recently to barter and diversify their winter larder. As David Sommerstein reports, they make the old-fashioned...cool. more