Back to the future
“Last year we had a major event for farmers, looking at their tax problems and the troubles that they have keeping up with farming,” says Benepe. “Data was produced showing that the average median size of farms around here is about 40 acres, and that farmland was used for agriculture on almost nine percent of the town’s land. That’s not insignificant. That’s over 3,600 acres.”
Farming is still a viable opportunity in today’s world, says Benepe, and there’s an interest locally in developing it. “Children and grandchildren who would have left their land and gone elsewhere are staying on their farm and continuing their work, and we want to encourage that by helping them market it. If we don’t really work on local production, we’re at the mercy of the international system: gasoline prices, road conditions and long-distance travel. The more you depend on large-scale growers, the less choice there will be of food we can eat, and none of it will be fresh. When you’re dealing directly with the producer, you’re making your own decisions about what you eat and what you pay for, and whom you’re supporting.”
The Saugerties Farmers’ Market will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Saturday (with the exception of September 29, during Garlic Festival weekend) from May 26 through October 20 at the Cahill Elementary School parking lot at 115 Main Street in Saugerties. For more information, call (917) 453-2082 or visit www.saugertiesfarmersmarket.com.
