Hi All,

Yesterday I had a great conversation with Rob Carpenter about the work he does as the Administrative Director for the Long Island Farm Bureau. The Long Island Farm Bureau is a non-governmental, volunteer organization financed and controlled by members for the purpose of solving economic and public policy issues challenging the agricultural industry. Their mission is to “Serve and Strengthen” agriculture on Long Island. There are many challenges facing farmers across the nation, and they are even amplified on Long Island because of the high cost of living here. The cost of farm land is exorbitant, competition from farmers growing elsewhere is high, and an increase in minimum wage is having an impact. He also sighted compliance to regulation and lack of labor and farm workers as other challenges that farmers have to deal with. I was surprised to learn that the L.I. Farm Bureau also has jurisdiction over fisherman and the thriving Aqua-culture business on Long Island. To here more about what the L.I. Farm Bureau does, please listen to our interview below. Rob will also be a presenter at the upcoming Long Island Food Coalition Conference, The State of Long Island Local Suburban Agriculture; Where Do We Grow From Here? at Hofstra University on April 19th!  I hope you can join us!