Sponsored by:
Assemblyman BOB ANDRZEJCZAK
District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)
Assemblyman ANDREW ZWICKER
District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
Directs Dept. of Agriculture to develop and implement beginning farmer mentoring program in cooperation with certain agricultural and educational organizations and entities.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning beginning farmers and supplementing Title 4 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Legislature finds and declares that agriculture is a critically important industry in the State; that preserving a viable agricultural base in the State will ensure that there is sufficient fresh, locally grown produce and other agricultural and horticultural products available for the public to consume and enjoy, which in turn contributes to promoting the health and welfare of the people; that the public also enjoys many aesthetic benefits from the presence of farms in their communities; that the continuing existence of farms and farming in the State is threatened by numerous pressures and stresses, especially in such a densely populated and developed state as New Jersey; that one of the major issues confronting agriculture in both the State and the nation is the increasing average age of farmers, thus demonstrating that there is insufficient recruitment of new or beginning farmers; that furthermore, the National Agricultural Statistics Service in the United States Department of Agriculture reports in its census of agriculture, which is taken every five years and is due again in 2017, that nationally the average age of the principal operator of a farm has risen from 55.3 years in 2002, to 57.1 years in 2007, and then to 58.3 years in 2012; that, similarly, in New Jersey the average age of the principal operator of a farm has risen from 57 years in 2007 to 59 years in 2012; that farming cannot survive if there are too few farmers in the State; and that, therefore, it is appropriate and necessary to create a mentoring program whereby experienced farmers can impart their knowledge to beginning farmers so that they will have a greater chance to succeed, thus ensuring that agriculture will continue to be a major industry in the State, in both the near and distant future, and that the Garden State will always prove itself worthy of that name.
2. a. The Department of Agriculture, in consultation and cooperation with the State Agriculture Development Committee, the New Jersey Farm Bureau, the county boards of agriculture, Rutgers the State University, the New Jersey Agricultural Society, and any other appropriate agricultural, horticultural, or educational entities in the State, shall develop and implement a beginning farmer mentoring program by which experienced farmers would provide guidance, advice, and other appropriate assistance to beginning farmers so that they and their farms may succeed and thrive. The department shall develop the structure of the beginning farmer mentoring program and the roles the agricultural, horticultural, and educational organizations and entities shall serve within it.
b. The department:
(1) shall incorporate into the beginning farmer mentoring program any online linking services and resources established by the department, and shall develop further avenues and opportunities for, experienced farmers to mentor beginning farmers, including establishing criteria for mentoring and the eligibility of farmers to mentor or be mentored under the program; and
(2) may partner with appropriate public or private organizations or entities to accomplish the purposes of this act, including entering into agreements or contracts with those organizations or entities to operate the program, in whole or in part, under the general supervision of the department.
c. The department shall adopt, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), any rules and regulations necessary to implement this act.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would require the Department of Agriculture, in consultation and cooperation with the State Agriculture Development Committee, the New Jersey Farm Bureau, the county boards of agriculture, Rutgers the State University, the New Jersey Agricultural Society, and any other appropriate agricultural, horticultural, or educational entities in the State, to develop and implement a beginning farmer mentoring program by which experienced farmers would provide guidance, advice, and other appropriate assistance to beginning farmers so that they and their farms may succeed and thrive.
The bill also would authorize the department to partner with appropriate public or private organizations or entities to accomplish the purposes of the bill, including entering into agreements or contracts with those organizations or entities to operate the program, in whole or in part, under the general supervision of the department.
This bill is necessary because, according to the latest available data, in New Jersey the average age of the principal operator of a farm has risen from 57 years in 2007 to 59 years in 2012. A similar trend is occurring nationally. Farming is unlikely to survive in New Jersey if this trend continues. Thus, it is necessary to create a mentoring program whereby experienced farmers can impart their knowledge to beginning farmers so that they will have a greater chance to succeed, thus ensuring that agriculture will continue to be a major industry in the State, in both the near and distant future.