NEWS FROM ASSEMBLYWOMAN DONNA

LUPARDO
123
rd
Assembly District Chair, Committee on Children and Families
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Chris Whalen
July 8, 2014 (0!" !23#$04!
Broome Agricuture Pa!" Ma#or Ro in Loca Econom!
Fact Sheet Details County Farms Impact on Region
(%&'()A*+,', '-" . As /art o0 a nearly 12 billion industry in 'e3 -or4 5tate,
%roome County 0arms 6enerate 1120 million annually to the local economy
accordin6 to ne3 data released today by Assembly3oman Donna 7u/ardo, Cornell
Coo/erati8e 9:tension o0 %roome County, and the %roome County Farm %ureau;
<A6riculture is incredibly im/ortant to the state and local economy,= said
Assembly3oman Donna 7u/ardo (D#9nd3ell"; <+here is enormous /otential 0or ne3
>obs in the 6ro3in6 ?eld o0 a6riculture /roduction, mar4etin6 and manu0acturin6;
%uildin6 on 3hat is already in /lace, %roome County could reali@e si6ni?cant 6ro3th
in this area;=
&n addition to 130;! million in sales re8enue, %roome County 0arms also
6enerate more than 1100 million in business in8estments, 12;2 million /ro/erty ta:
re8enue, and 12;! million in labor 3a6esA all o0 3hich hel/ to /romote continued
6ro3th o0 0ruits, 8e6etables, and li8estoc4 each year;
<&tBs not >ust the sales 0rom 0ood 6ro3n by 0armers that bene?ts the
economy,= said Da8id Johnson o0 the %roome County Farm %ureau; <*oney is s/ent
e8ery day to /urchase 0eed 0or animals, 6asoline 0or tractors and eCui/ment, and
electricity to run machinery; +he acti8ity our 0arms see truly has a ri//le eDect
across the board;=
An emer6in6 eDort to de8elo/ local 0ood systems is creatin6 ne3
o//ortunities 0or the a6riculture industry in %roome County; For e:am/le,
restaurants and ca0eterias in the area are addin6 local /roducts to their menus,
/ro8idin6 a ne3 a8enue 0or consumers to recei8e local /roductsA and 5E'- %roome
has /lans 0or a ne3 hos/itality and culinary /ro6ram 3hich 3ill also tie in locally
/roduced 0oods;
<%uyin6 local has had a 6reat im/act on our local economy, but it also has
tremendous health bene?ts,= said Fic4i (iarratano o0 Cornell Coo/erati8e 9:tension;
<5tudies sho3 that eatin6 locally 6ro3n 0ood reduces the ris4 0or chronic disease;=
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A local tas40orce has also been established to build on the success o0 local
a6riculture, hel/in6 0armers ?nd 3ays to become more eGcient and 6ro3 the sco/e
o0 their businesses; 9arlier this year, 0armers across the county recei8ed a sur8ey
3hich 3ill hel/ the tas40orce identi0y barriers to the 6ro3th o0 local a6riculture; +he
results 0rom that sur8ey 3ill be released in the comin6 3ee4s;
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