Farm insurance workshops to be offered

MALONE — The Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) associations of Northern New York are offering a combined "How Much Protection Do You Need? Let's Talk Farm Insurance" and "Choosing Your Markets Wisely" workshop in Malone and Westport.

They are scheduled for 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, May 30, at the CCE Franklin County office in Malone and Thursday, May 31, at the CCE Essex County office in Westport.

Roxaina Hurlburt with Foy Insurance Agency in Deer River will provide information and tips on farm insurance coverage to meet different needs.

"This workshop is an opportunity for farmers to update their existing knowledge of farm-based insurance and to learn about new products that may fit their current needs, particularly if their farm business mix has changed," Hurlburt said.

CCE Tompkins County Ag Marketing Specialist Matt LeRoux has developed a Market Channel Assessment tool that provides farmers with farm-specific results for measuring the performance of selling through such channels as CSAs, farmers' markets, roadside stands and groceries. LeRoux will help workshop participants evaluate the channels they are currently using as well as demonstrate a framework for evaluating new marketing opportunities.

"This workshop's market channel assessment exercise is a way for experienced farmers to analyze where they might change up their marketing for a labor savings or improved profitability. It will also help new marketers evaluate opportunities with the best fit for their production and preferences," LeRoux said.

LeRoux recently received funding from the New York Farm Viability Institute to work with 50 farms in a market channel assessment project over the next two years.

The workshop fee is $10 per business. For more information or to register for the Malone workshop, contact Bernadette Logozar, 483-7403, bel7@cornell.edu; or for the Westport workshop, Sharon Garvey, 962-4810, Ext. 0, essex@cornell.edu.

Project to connect farmers with landowners

SARANAC LAKE — Adirondack Sustainable Communities (ASC) has been awarded a grant from the Farm Credit AgEnhancement Program for an Adirondack Park farm land mapping project to connect farmers with landowners who may want to lease or sell their land. The goal is to strengthen the agriculture industry in the Adirondacks by increasing the amount of farmland in production.

ASC will analyze data to identify existing property use and current landowners of areas with suitable agricultural soils. A user-friendly computer mapping program will be developed to display this information with the goal to connect aspiring farmers with landowners interested in turning their properties into active farmland.

Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement of Cobleskill provided the grant award. It supports programs, projects and events that are intended to strengthen agriculture, commercial fishing and the forest-products sector in the Northeast.

Adirondack Harvest, a co-sponsor of the project (www.adirondackharvest.com), has also been instrumental in providing technical assistance to small-scale farmers and in developing markets for locally produced farm products. Demand for locally grown products continues to expand and local markets are presently limited by supply.

Other supporting organizations are the Adirondack Land Trust and the Adirondack North Country Association.