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New Jersey continues to lead the nation in farmland preservation, with 16 percent of its available agricultural land base permanently preserved. However, to maintain a strong agricultural industry, New Jersey must not only preserve its farmland but ensure farmers continue to have access to the land.

Farmland in the state is among the highest priced in the nation. Although the Farmland Preservation Program can help keep farmland affordable by removing its development potential, preserved farmland is becoming increasingly attractive to non-farmer buyers interested not in agriculture but in the estate value of the land. As a result, when preserved farms are sold, oftentimes bona fide farmers cannot afford to buy them.

Farmers unable to purchase land turn to leasing, with many New Jersey farmers leasing all or a portion of the land they farm. Thirty-eight percent of the land farmed in New Jersey is leased, which mirrors a national trend. However, farmers often have difficulty finding available land to lease, and short-term leases – often on a year-to-year basis – can discourage investment in farm infrastructure and other operational improvements.

Aspiring new farmers face the same land barriers as established farmers but also may lack the experience, education and financial resources to start a successful operation. If agriculture is to continue to thrive, the industry must make efforts to attract and encourage the next generation of farmers.

Agricultural viability is eroded when farmers cannot afford to repair and maintain existing buildings, or construct new agricultural buildings, due to the heavy burden associated with taxation of agricultural structures and improvements. This, in turn, further contributes to the barriers of farmland ownership for existing farmers and agricultural entrepreneurs.

Agriculture Secretary Kuperus formed the New Jersey Farmland Affordability/Availability Working Group to examine these issues and advise the State Agriculture Development Committee (SADC) on ways to make farmland more affordable and available to New Jersey farmers. The working group in September issued a report containing its recommendations. The SADC has distributed the report to counties and other interested parties for comment.

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the delegates to the 90th State Agricultural Convention, assembled in Atlantic City, New Jersey on January 24-26, 2005, recognizing that farmland equity is the cornerstone economic issue confronting all farm landowners, this delegate body supports every effort to protect and enhance equity and within this context supports the SADC’s efforts to identify ways to make farmland more affordable and available to farmers.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, although we do not endorse the current SADC working group recommendations, we support the SADC’s efforts to widely distribute the report to ensure ample opportunity for public comment.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we urge the SADC to continue to explore other ways to make farmland more available, including continuing efforts with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to open up more state-owned lands for leasing to farmers.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we call upon the SADC to work in cooperation with the agricultural leadership to ensure that New Jersey farmers have access to ample and affordable farmland to ensure the continued viability of the agricultural industry.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we recommend the SADC and the NJDA identify recommendations for providing tax relief to farmers for taxes associated with the improvement, expansion and construction of agricultural buildings and structures, in order to further the goal of farmland affordability for current and futures generations of New Jersey farmers.