As we celebrate Thanksgiving and the start of the holiday season, Connecticut’s farm industry is gearing up for an uncertain future under the Trump administration.
Bryan Hurlbert, the commissioner of the state’s Department of Agriculture, said the industry will undergo a lot of change next year.
“We’re going to have a new administration at the federal level, we’re going to have a new secretary of agriculture, we’re going to have a new Farm Bill, we’re going to have a new set of legislators up in Hartford,” Hulbert said. “We’re going to have a vastly different budget situation than we’ve had over the past five years. Invite your local state legislators to your farm and show them what you do, what you produce, and how you do it. And help them think about how they can support the growth and expansion of your farm.”
Connecticut has around 5,000 farms that produce everything from meat products to dairy and maple syrup.
The industry is worth around $4 billion to the state's economy and employs more than 31,000 people.
It’s also aging — the average age of a Connecticut farmer is 58.
Paul Larson, the president of the state’s Farm Bureau, said the state needs to find young people to take over. That includes looking for interest among people who didn’t grow up in a farming family.
“Some of them are not from farm families, and they don’t have any experience in agriculture. But they’re interested and want to pursue a future in agriculture, which is wonderful,” Larson said. “Because the reality is if you just rely on kids from farm families to continue that farm, it’s not going to work. There are just so many other opportunities for young people to pursue these days.”
