ALBANY – The president’s worldwide tariffs are affecting businesses across the U.S., and in New York, its vast agricultural industry is no exception. The state is stepping in to provide tariff relief aid for farmers.
State Agriculture Commissioner Richard Ball says farmers are getting hit from both ends.
“The cost of input, things like fertilizer, diesel fuel, metal parts, tractors, implements and equipment, all immediately increase in cost, and at the same time, the inability to export freely from the country and a lot of our export markets affected the prices and diminished the price the commodity might bring ordinarily,” he said. “It hit the farmer coming and it hit the farmer on the other end when they don’t get fully paid for the product they produced.”
The tariffs, coupled with the April freeze, Hudson Valley farmers took an extra big hit.
Governor Hochul’s one-time aid program that will provide between $1,000 and $25,000 to eligible farms, said Commissioner Ball.
“For farmers, this is obviously meant to be a help, meant to be a stimulus, and meant to be sign that New York State is being their agricultural community.
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