agriculture
Beginning farmers could get matching grants for upgrades
Assembly Members Dawn Fantasia and Michael Inganamort’s New Jersey bill would help newer growers pay for equipment, buildings and other farm improvements. The state share could cover up to half of a project, with farms limited to 150 acres and at least $10,000 in recent sales.
New Jersey’s New Farmers Improvement Grant Program would sit in the Department of Agriculture and back projects that help younger farm operations grow, diversify or use more sustainable practices. Farmers would still have to put up their own match and be materially involved in day-to-day production.
- A New Jersey bill would create matching grants for beginning farmers.
- The program would sit in the Department of Agriculture.
- Applicants would have to meet size, sales and involvement requirements.
- The grants would cover part of the cost, not the whole bill.
- In New Jersey, getting a farm off the ground can mean buying equipment, putting up structures or making changes that only pay off over time
In New Jersey, getting a farm off the ground can mean buying equipment, putting up structures or making changes that only pay off over time. A bill sponsored by Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia and Assemblyman Mike Inganamort would establish the New Farmers Improvement Grant Program in the Department of Agriculture to help beginning farmers cover those costs.
The grants would be matching money, so the state would not pay for a project outright. Farmers would have to put up their own share too, which makes the program less of a handout than a way to stretch limited cash a little farther.
A narrow lane for new growers
The bill defines a beginning farmer broadly enough to catch someone who wants to farm and has never farmed before, someone who has farmed in the state for 10 years or less, or someone who qualifies as a first-time farmer under federal law. It also says the farmer must be 18 or older and materially and substantially involved in day-to-day production.
- The farm would have to be 150 acres or less.
- The land would have to be entirely in New Jersey.
- The operation would need at least $10,000 in gross sales in the prior calendar year.
- The farmer would have to take part in day-to-day production, not just own the land.