Greig Farm, in Redhook, NY, represents my childhood. Some of my best memories of my time living in New York are of picking apples in the fall or going to pick out the very biggest pumpkins with my brother before Halloween. Going into the store after a good hour of "pick your own" fun with the family was the most exciting part because I could go feed the goats and ducks or go inside and get some old fashioned candy and fresh doughnuts. I can't imagine my childhood without the freedom and old fashioned family fun of Greig Farm, which is why I was shocked to see it on Bill Moyers documentary, "America's First River", as a struggling family farm barely making a profit.
The story of the family farm struggling to hold on is not unique to the Hudson Valley in this booming world of progression and technology. Farmer's children do not want to grow up to take over the farm and work long days to barely get by, they would rather go live in a big city and make a lot of easy money. The Hudson Valley farmers, however, have it particularly bad because they generally have relatively little land, as a result of the development in the beautiful Valley, that must compete with the gargantuan farms of the Midwest.
The good news is that there is new hope for the family farms of the Hudson Valley. A new nonprofit organization, Hudson Valley Agri-Business Development Corp. is now working to help the farms by promoting them to larger companies, teaching them about organic products (which are in high demand right now) and giving them the funds necessary to boost their farming methods. As daunting as the task is, the farmers, their families, and all of the families like my own who enjoy places such a Greig Farm, will be eternally greatful for any extra help to keep local farms a part of the Hudson Valley. For more information on Hudson Valley farm decline and Hudson Valley Agri-Business Development Corp., read: http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070123/NEWS/701230318