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What Comes Naturally
Agriculture Commissioner Shirley Ferris oversees the
fortunes of Connecticut's oldest industry
No average bureaucrat is state Agriculture Commissioner Shirley Ferris. You might say she takes a hands-on approach to her work: Ferris and her husband, Charles D. Ferris III, own and operate Ferris Acres Dairy Farm in Newtown, where they tend to 140 head of cattle. Before being named commissioner in 1995 by Gov. John G. Rowland, Ferris was a journalist and freelance writer specializing, naturally, in agriculture.
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Business New Haven
10/19/1998
By: BNH
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What is your agricultural background?
I have a long background in agriculture. My husband is a dairy farmer in Newtown and I have been involved, hands-on, with that for over 40 years. I have done volunteer work for the Farm Bureau and I have been about every officer you can be at the county level. I served a term at the state level. I was appointed in 1995 by Governor Rowland.
What are the state's principal
agricultural products?
The nursery and greenhouse as well as the dairy industry are sort of neck-and-neck in value.
What is the size of the agricultural industry in Connecticut?
We use a figure of a $2 billion industry including land, nursery inventory, tack stores involved in equine are the components that are part of the industry. According to the UConn study, [agriculture represents] two percent of the state industrial output, which is two tenths of a percent more than last year. So we are still a growing industry.
How does that compare with 50 years ago?
Well, there were a lot more farms 50 years ago. There was very little nursery/greenhouse industry. But with the dairy industry, while there were 4,000 farms years ago [today there are 257], the actual production of milk is greater than it was with a lot of smaller farms.
Do we still have a sizable
poultry industry?
Yes we do. We have three major ones. One is Arbor Acres, which is a producer of heavy breasted broiler. We have one that produces sterile eggs for the medical industry and, of course, we have the egg industry, which leads New England in production.
How is the tobacco industry doing now with the growing popularity
of cigars?
There has been a huge resurgence in the tobacco industry. Two years ago there was a dramatic increase. Connecticut is famous for its broadleaf and shade tobacco, which is the wrapper for cigars. Farmers have put their land back into tobacco.
What does the future of agriculture in Connecticut look like to you?
I think the future of agriculture in Connecticut is very bright. We have completed the first ever business plan for the Department of Agriculture, called “Changing the Face of Agriculture.” I think that in the future there will be a couple of dozen very large dairy and nursery operations and the rest of the operations will have diverted in some way to take advantage of the retail outlets. Within a decade there is no reason why Connecticut could not become a year-round producer of food. With all the advances that are made in the material for greenhouses and advancements in genetics and hydroponics, the missing piece now is co-generation. The most expensive part is having the greenhouses heated in the winter, but if we can plug those greenhouses into waste heat, called co-generation, and use that to heat them, we could see a dramatic turn-around in the amount of food that is imported into the state. It could be produced right here.
Are there some specifically stated goals in that plan for the state with regard to agriculture?
Absolutely. Our vision statement says that the Department of Agriculture will benefit the citizens of the state through proactive programs that address the issue of the changing face of agriculture. The demand of the public is to develop, promote and regulate agricultural businesses, to protect agriculture and aquaculture resources and to enforce laws pertaining to animals.
What does that mean, to enforce laws pertaining to animals?
The rabies program would fall under that. Where domestic animals are involved, our animal control officers will go out and - say a person has a dog in the backyard and a suspicious animal came around and bit the dog. Our people go out and make sure the dog has had its rabies shots, and if a human was involved in any way, in contact with saliva or has been bitten or scratched, we advise them to see their doctor. Under this same area falls the humane treatment of animals. When there is a call from someone in the public that they perceive that an animal is not being treated humanely, our animal control officers go out and investigate and, if need be, take the animal to another shelter. Thirdly - maybe most important as far as public health is concerned - when there are diseases that may affect other industries, we will go out and quarantine whatever it is and make sure that there is no spread of the disease.
Are there any new agricultural
products that are making inroads and having an economic impact?
They are working on a deer-resistance laurel and rhododendron right now. Recently, four of seven grants given out by Connecticut Innovations Inc. and Yankee Ingenuity were agriculture-related; two were in the nursery area. One of those was around a method we call tissue culture, or micropropagation. A gene is inserted in a plant, which has an aroma or a taste that is not appealing to a deer, and then a tiny bit of tissue is taken and put in a medium. Then in a little while, you have bigger plant that is moved to the greenhouse. These grants are a co-operative effort between UConn and private farms [Imperial Nurseries and Clinton Nurseries]. These are the kinds of things that are going to make it possible for Connecticut not only to retain its agricultural heritage, but to go forward with it.
How are family farms doing in the state, and are we seeing the same degree of corporate agglomeration here as elsewhere?
The 257 dairy farms we have are all family farms. I think there are only two or three corporate farms in Connecticut.
The vineyard industry is relatively new to the state. How is it doing?
They are holding their own. I haven't seen a lot of growth in the wine industry, but they are doing very well. The state put together a wine trail, which is still very popular. There are about 15 or so wine growers in the state and they are all doing very well to my knowledge.
Open space: Are we still losing acreage, holding our own or adding acreage?
Well, obviously in a business boom like this we are going to lose some land. Our state farmland preservation program has saved over 25,000 acres now. The preservation program is a voluntary program where a farm family will sell their development rights to the state. They will retain the agricultural rights to the land, which means they are still paying taxes, but their land can never be developed for housing or shopping malls. There is a new federal program called Farms for the Future, which is part of the 1996 Farm Bill. They have chosen 14 or 15 states whose programs they find suitable, and our program has become a model for many other states. [Washington] gave us $1 million last year and we just found out that we will get another $1 million for the year going forward. We will be able to save around 1,000 acres with that.
How supportive of the agricultural industry is the legislature?
I think the support is very good. The public has sort of a warm, fuzzy feeling in their heart for agriculture, and that is good. But what I would like people to understand is that agriculture is a vital business in this state. It not only brings in dollars, but creates all that open space - the visual impact when you go for a ride in Connecticut. There is nothing more beautiful than that. I think the public encourages legislators to work positively toward agriculture, and we have always found the legislature to be [cooperative].
In terms of open space, are there 0state funds beyond what you mentioned that match the federal funds?
In the bonding program there is currently $6 million for farmland preservation. But the governor has set a bonding cap to get the state out of debt. One of the things that we will be working very hard on over the next year is some other way to save farmland in addition to the preservation program. We are looking at a crop land trust. If you have a family but with no children who are interested in farming, but don't want to see the land [be developed], you can give it to a land trust. The land would be specifically for crop land, and we would get a linking service together with a lot of young farmers that can't afford to go out and pay $10,000 or $12,000 for an acre. If they were in touch with this trust, they could start up their farm and this would be at no cost to the state. We also have a Global Marketing Plan. It is a federal program for companies that want to get out to food shows. The largest food show in the country is in Chicago, and this helps [Connecticut farmers] get their products abroad by sending people abroad to display Connecticut companies' products.
In general are Connecticut farmers making decent livings, or are they just hanging on?
I think that they are pretty much making the cost of production. The Northeast Interstate Dairy Compact is a federal [initiative]. New England is the pilot program for it, and it has been an outstanding success in Connecticut. Before this was instituted, we were losing 20 farms a year, and I think we have only lost five this year. Also, the price of milk didn't skyrocket like it was supposed to have.
So the farmer is getting more but milk is costing less? How is that possible?
There is a price set by the federal government. What the dairy compact does is sets an 'over-order' price, which says, 'We will give you X dollars over the [market price].' Those dollars come from the processors. Partners are very important in the dairy industry. The farmer needs the processor and vice-versa; and we both need the retailers. Farmers who were wringing their hands over being able to stay in business have had a stay of execution, if you will, and they know that they're going to get a certain price for the milk. At the same time, there has been no damage to the consumer - they aren't paying more for the milk. This is a win-win situation all the way around.
How are agricultural fairs in the state doing?
They are doing well. On the customer survey from our business plan, there were two items that were brought up over and over again in the comments section. For almost every survey respondent, the emphasis was on the farmland preservation. The second thing was, 'Let's do more fairs.' We have just about doubled the number of fairs we are active in. We have our third annual expo coming up at the Hartford Armory on October 24 and 25 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. While it is still is an effort to educate the public. We have noticed that most of the major supermarkets come and do a display at the expo, and the people who [produce] specialty food items go over and talk to the supermarkets and make deals. It has become a marketplace. Our goal is to get about every facet of agriculture in that room. It is very impressive.
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