Effort should keep family farms alive
Published January 14, 2016
Editorial by Winston-Salem Journal, January 12, 2016.
You don’t have to be a fan of sage superstar Willie Nelson to know that family farms and farmland are in decline throughout America today. We hope a new initiative will be able to help this American tradition thrive in our area.
Farming has never been an easy life, and for whatever truth can be found in romantic visions of working with animals and the earth, the challenges never let up: Hard work, long hours, low market prices, unpredictable weather.
And in Forsyth County, farmers have been losing their land.
Since 1954, Forsyth County farmland has decreased from about 159,000 acres to 40,467 acres in 2012, the Journal’s Meghann Evans reported recently. Farms have dropped in the same time frame from 2,927 to 662. That’s well over a 75 percent loss.
The reasons for these losses are varied, but no doubt they often come down to economics: Some farmers just can’t make a go of it, or have to sell off portions of family land to help make ends meet. Some younger members of family farms decide there have to be better ways to make a living.
But this is a treasured way of life in our area, so a leadership team composed of farmers, foresters, planners, realtors and members of local agencies began meeting in December to create a farmland protection plan. They’re evaluating the state of agriculture in the area and hope to come up with ideas that will help.
Forsyth County’s Cooperative Extension Service and the Forsyth Soil and Water Conservation District are involved in the effort, utilizing a $14,000 state grant the conservation distract received for the plan in late 2013, the Journal reported.
According to extension service director Mark Tucker, the plan doesn’t call for a ban on development, but would promote a balance as well as “developing in a smart way to promote agricultural development.”
Recommendations might include increased farmers markets, a produce processing center, a program to promote agri-tourism or more classes for new farmers. More conservation easements might be in order, or promoting a voluntary agriculture district program.
About half of the state’s counties have adopted a farmland protection plan, Jerry Dorsett, a conservationist with the conservation district, told the Journal.
We’re glad that this group includes a variety of stakeholders. They should have some practical understanding of the effectiveness of the suggestions offered.
Keeping farms alive in our area makes good economic sense. Agriculture provides a livelihood for many, and keeping a certain amount of open space also can be enticing to people and businesses looking to locate here, plan organizers told the Journal. It also helps Forsyth County to be competitive when it seeks grants, Dorsett told the Journal.
The group hopes to have a plan to present to the community and county commissioners by the middle of the year. We look forward to hearing more.
