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SUGARLOAF TWP. — Don Gregory seized the opportunity Thursday morning to let the state’s agriculture secretary know how he and many other farmers feel about a lot of issues that are affecting their livelihoods and the future of the industry in Pennsylvania.
Gregory spoke from his heart at a breakfast at Tom’s Kitchen on Route 93 in Sugarloaf Township, where state Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding was speaking and answering questions. The annual breakfast is sponsored by state Rep. Tarah Toohil, R-Butler Township, and was attended by about 60 farmers.
Gregory and the other farmers raised concerns about several issues: the uncertainty of the Penn State Extension, the Chesapeake Bay water quality, increased governmental requirements, and more.
Gregory was also concerned about the very future of farming in Pennsylvania, noting that the average age of a farmer is in the mid 60s. He said families that have owned and operated farms for several generations will soon have no family members to continue.
“We’ve gt to get young people back to the farm,” Gregory said. “People often say that farmers should do this for the love of it. This is a business and we need to make it worthwhile.”
Gregory said farm income is down some 53 percent since 2013 and the reliance of foreign grown food has been increasing. He said high costs and taxes are putting many farmers out of business.
Redding offered no argument to Gregory’s claims. He said part of the job of government is to be sure who the U.S. is trading with and what the margins are.
Just this week, more than 150 members of the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau traveled to Washington D.C. seeking support from Pennsylvania’s Congressional Delegation on critical issues impacting agriculture. The farmers met with lawmakers and legislative staff to discuss a wide variety of topics, including the urgent need to establish a national standard to oversee the labeling of genetically modified food, as well as legislation to force the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers to withdraw a rule that would dramatically expand regulations over farmland.
According to information from the Farm Bureau, the House has already passed a bill that would force the agencies to withdraw the existing rule and begin a new process that includes conversations with farmers, builders, county governments and other stakeholders.
Other key issues discussed included the need for changes to the Endangered Species Act to enhance transparency and accountability; enactment of new immigration reform legislation that results in a commonsense solution to address obstacles facing farm families; and tax reform to address the financial challenges faced by farmers from capital gains and federal estate taxes.
On Tuesday, Richard Roush, dean of Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, said that layoff notices would go out May 1 to the 1,100 people working for the Penn State Extension unless lawmakers restore more than $50 million in cuts.
“We can’t just shutter the extension for a while and restart it,” Roush said. “Once we start down this path of giving people layoff notices, the damage to the college and extension will be long lasting.”
Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed all spending for the cooperative extension and PSU agricultural research as part of his effort to keep negotiations open on the fiscal 2016 budget. The Republican-controlled legislature needs a two-thirds majority to override Wolf’s line-item veto, and that means getting votes from Democrats.
“The situation is critical,” Redding said Thursday. “That’s why folks like those here today need to weigh in on the issue.”
Redding also urged the farmers to complete a survey regarding the Chesapeake Bay watershed. State and local conservation district officials say farmers should receive credit for helping to improving water quality.
