F+S SPOTLIGHT
A Million-Dollar Move
The Upstate Curious TeaM AT COMPASS Pledges $1 Million
to Preserve New York's Farmland: A Bold Step Towards Sustainable Futures
Photo: West Branch Commons, a community land trust focused on supporting QTBIPOC farmers with equitable land access.
When Upstate Curious Founder, Megan Brenn-White was looking for a headquarters for her growing real estate team, she discovered a 40-acre non-operating dairy farm in Accord, NY that seemed like just the right fit. After purchasing the farm, Megan participated in a workshop series with The American Farmland Trust for non-operating landowners.
Megan walked away from the workshop with a new appreciation for the challenges farmers in the area face, and an unexpected new mission for her real estate team - to help raise $1M for American Farmland Trust's new initiative - The New York Farmland Access Fund.
Upstate Curious Team at Compass
One-third of New York’s farmers are 65+. These senior farmers own or operate two million acres of farmland vulnerable to being lost as it changes hands in the coming years.
Meanwhile, young and historically underserved farmers face major barriers: finding affordable farmland, accessing the tools to steward the land with regenerative and climate-smart practices, and launching successful businesses.
The New York Farmland Access Fund will nurture a new crop of diverse farmers and preserve farmland during this critical period of intergenerational transition.
This new fund will be used to preserve up to 1,000 acres of farmland, which will then be made available at a significantly reduced agricultural market value to historically underserved farmers, including LGBTQ+, BIPOC, women, and veteran farmers. And, it'll also help provide technical assistance to bring that farmland to life.
The Upstate Curious Team has promised at least 25% of the $1 million pledge and is actively raising funds to fulfill the entire pledge by 2028.
30%
OF NY FARMERS ARE OVER AGE 65
2 million
ACRES OF NY FARMLAND ARE AT RISK
<5%
OF ALL FARMS ARE BIPOC-OWNED OR OPERATED
Upstate Curious and The American Farmland Trust recently hosted a silent auction and breakfast at the 2023 Field + Supply Spring MRKT to help raise funds for the new initiative. While a $1 Million pledge might seem like a great feat, the team has already made impressive progress towards the goal.
"The project is for farmers that have been traditionally underserved, and 'underserved' is a really polite way of putting how they have faced massive uphill battles — legal, societal, etc. — to purchase farmland, or they don't have the generational wealth because they weren't allowed to purchase homes," Megan Brenn-White - Founder, The Upstate Curious Team at Compass.
Beyond providing financial assistance to budding farmers, the project has a secondary goal: preserving farmland, especially in the Hudson Valley, where land is becoming more coveted by agriculture businesses because of the region's moderate climate.
Over the next few weeks, Field + Supply will be sharing more about this initiative, including stories from folks whose lives are directly impacted by the program.
Click the links below to learn more about Upstate Curious' pledge, the New York Farmland Access Fund (NYFAF), and how to contribute directly to support this important initiative.
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