Agriculture and Markets, Department of

Agency Web Site: https://www.agriculture.ny.gov/

Mission

The Department of Agriculture and Markets is charged with fostering a competitive and safe New York food and agricultural industry for the benefit of producers and consumers. The Department encourages the growth and economic health of the State’s agricultural and food industry and conducts various inspections and testing programs to enforce laws on food safety, animal and plant health, and accuracy of labeling. The Department also preserves agricultural resources, improves soil and water quality, and operates the annual State Fair near Syracuse.

Organization and Staffing

The Department of Agriculture and Markets will have a workforce of 512 positions for FY 2020. The Department is run by a commissioner, who is appointed by the Governor and subject to confirmation by the Senate. The Department is headquartered in Albany and maintains six regional offices in Brooklyn, Buffalo, Hauppauge, Poughkeepsie, Rochester and Syracuse.

The Department of Agriculture and Markets’ operating programs are funded by the General Fund, fees, federal grants and other funds.

Budget Highlights

The FY 2020 Executive Budget recommends $175.1 million All Funds for the Department of Agriculture and Markets, which is a decrease of $11.7 million from the FY 2019 Enacted Budget. This change primarily reflects the elimination of one-time legislative adds and capital projects.

The Executive Budget recommends a workforce of 512 FTEs for the Department, an increase of 29 from FY 2019 levels.

Major budget actions include:

• An increase of $2.5 million in capital appropriations to continue the on-going repair and rehabilitation of the Fair’s facilities and transformation of the State Fair into a year-round attraction.
• An increase of $8 million in Aid to Localities appropriations to fund programs that provide the specialized technical assistance, industry promotion, and research investments to reduce farms' exposure to economic and climate inconsistency statewide.
• An increase of $1.8 million in State Operations appropriations that will allow the Department to add 29 new food safety inspectors which are needed to meet the growing number of annually required food safety inspections.
• $1.1 million for the “Taste NY” program, which promotes locally grown or produced food and beverages by making them readily available across the State at high traffic retail venues located at rest areas, airports and train stations. In addition to this innovative retail concept, Taste NY also fosters increased demand for these products via strategic branding and marketing efforts;

For more information on this agency's budget recommendations located in the Executive Budget Briefing Book, click on the following link:

Briefing Book – Environment and Energy (PDF)

Program Highlights

Program Highlights

The Agricultural Business Services program promotes the agricultural economy of the State and fosters the responsible use of resources to preserve agricultural land and the environment. These programs are carried out through six divisions which:

• Support and serve the State’s food and agricultural industry in the areas of market development and promotion, food and nutrition, and business development and support - including the Taste NY program and the NY Grown & Certified program;
• Inspect and test livestock, poultry, and plants to control and eradicate diseases that can both cause severe economic losses for farmers and present a public health hazard;
• Oversee the activities of county soil and water conservation districts, direct the agricultural non-point source pollution control and farmland preservation grant programs, establish agricultural districts, administer agricultural product market orders and the Federal Farmers Market Nutrition Program for low-income families, and collect and disseminate statistical agricultural information; and
• Exercise a variety of statutorily required activities involving the pricing and marketing of milk and milk products, and the licensing and bonding of milk and farm products dealers.

The Consumer Food Services program ensures that wholesome food products are sold to the consumer and that the industry and the public are protected from fraud, adulteration, or malpractice in the production, processing, transportation, and retailing of food and gasoline, and in the use of measuring devices. In carrying out these purposes, the program:

• Licenses and inspects more than 35,000 businesses that produce, process, manufacture, or distribute food products, registers food represented as kosher, and grades farm products;
• Inspects and tests dairy products to enforce laws pertaining to milk and milk product sanitation, and guards against harmful or misrepresented food; and
• Certifies and calibrates weighing and measuring devices and oversees the testing of motor fuels under the Motor Fuel Quality and Clean Air programs.

Note: Most recent estimates as of 1/15/2019