Dairy Month Celebration at King Brother's Dairy in Schuylerville, NY on June 20th, 2023.
Charlie Elrod, Ph.D.
President & CEO Natural Biologics, Inc.
Vice President, NEAFA
In recent months, the NEAFA newsletter has focused attention on activities surrounding agricultural advocacy as the various state and federal legislatures have been in session. With that season coming to an end, NEAFA turns its attention to other opportunities for collaboration. In late June, NEAFA co-sponsored a Dairy Month Celebration at King Brother’s Dairy in Schuylerville, NY, along with the Northeast Dairy Producers Association, NY Animal Ag Coalition, and NY Farm Bureau.
The event was meant to showcase an incredible fifth generation dairy business, and to give these organizations an opportunity to informally meet with representatives from the NY State Senate and Assembly, Department of Ag & Markets, and the Governor’s Office. Unfortunately, the legislature was still in session. New York Agriculture Commissioner Ball and some of his staff, along with a Food and Ag Policy Advisor from the Governor’s Office, were the only governmental representatives present.
What we heard from each organization and from the Commissioner, as well as in the many conversations to follow, is the need for more collaboration to support the dairy industry. Each organization represents different constituencies with different priorities, yet there is a great deal of overlap between them.
An overarching theme however, is the recognition that we all exist to support a vibrant dairy industry. Everything, from providing exposure to animal agriculture in early childhood education, to advocating for FFA chapters in high schools and supporting the Dairy Fellows program at Cornell University, are seen as opportunities to build a stronger base for the peaceful co-existence of farms with the general populace. They are opportunities to grow the next generation of leadership for agriculture and agribusiness. Any opportunity that we have to work with and support other organizations championing agriculture should be seized.
Another arena of collaboration for NEAFA is a new, formalized relationship with the Vermont Dairy Producers Alliance. Because our lobbyists, Hinman Straub, only work in NY, we wanted to be more active in our support of the VT dairy industry. With monetary support from NEAFA, we are contributing to VDPA’s lobbying efforts with the Shouldice Group in Montpelier. In addition, NEAFA’s board member Kevin Kouri will also serve on the board of VDPA. In Vermont, there is a lot of urban pressure, and a growing proportion of the population that has no idea about what goes into dairy farming, and the benefits that those farms provide. Only by actively participating in the legislative process there can we hope to forestall the erosion of dairy farmers’ right to farm. We look forward to a fruitful collaboration with VDPA.
In closing, I would encourage all of our members to seek opportunities to collaborate; both with other agricultural organizations or at large in your community. Doing so in no way diminishes your efforts as a person or organization. It only lends your skills, knowledge, and voice to a cause that seeks to build a stronger, more resilient agricultural community for the future.