ALBANY – Dairy farmers are facing a crisis of epic proportions, and the state’s top ag advocacy group is appealing to all New Yorkers for help. The New York Farm Bureau is asking people to do their part by paying a visit – not to their local supermarket’s dairy case, but rather the organization’s website.
Specifically, the NYFB wants people to visit the eLobby section of their site, www.nyfb.org, where they can take action on a number of important topics in the agriculture industry. And they’ve made taking that action as simple and painless as possible.
“While nothing replaces personal contact (phone call or letter) to an elected official, in today’s busy times it’s sometimes difficult for farmers to connect,” said Bradd Vickers, president of the Chenango County Farm Bureau. “The eLobby site allows them to do so in a timely manner, and it’s easy.”
The state farm bureau has persuasive policy statements already prepared on their site. All someone has to do in order to send a message to their legislators is select a topic, enter their contact information and click send. To simplify the process even further for local residents, Vickers has added a quick link on the county farm bureau’s website, www.ccfb.org. The link provides “a fast way to weigh in on the issues,” he explained. Virtually anyone can use the tool, as long as they have Internet access.
Now, with many farms struggling to survive, Vickers said it is more important than ever to show support for local agricultural producers.
“Maintaining the largest industry in Chenango County is not just a stimulus package,” he explained. “It is a major part of our local economy, and the majority of the income is spent locally.
Dairy farmers are facing some of the worst market conditions in the history of the industry. Processing and transportation costs have soared, meaning consumers are paying a premium in the grocery store. Those high prices have weakened demand, causing the price paid to farmers per hundredweight to plummet. At the same time, those same farmers are paying record amounts for fuel, fertilizer and feed. The result is a fiscal crisis which the NYFB says “cannot be understated.”
“There is no doubt that many dairy farms will not be able to sustain their businesses in this fiscal climate unless decisive action is taken now,” states one of two eLobby letters NYFB has written to address issues faced by the dairy industry. Each letter proposes different steps which could be taken on the federal level to provide some degree of relief to dairy farmers.
According to the farm bureau, “these measures will maintain the economic backbone of New York’s rural communities and agriculture infrastructure,” while “ensuring the availability of high-quality, safe, nutritious and affordable milk and dairy products.”
Both the state and local farm bureaus are reaching out not just to farmers, but to everyone, for help in communicating this message to elected officials in Albany and Washington.
“We encourage everyone to get involved with us,” Vickers said.
For more information contact the Chenango County Farm Bureau at 334-6061 or visit the CCFB website at www.ccfb.org.