NY Farmers Going Organic, Selling Direct to Consumers

Nov. 1, 2010 /EIN Presswire/ -- In a new indicator of the growing influence of consumer demand for fresh food, the National Agricultural Statistics Service has released a study showing that 20 percent of New York State's farms now sell at least some of their products directly to consumers.

Farmers are even adjusting their traditional farming methods to accommodate new consumer demands, including the planting for winter crops, building covers to protect crops from winter wind, frost and snow, and heating greenhouses to grow warm weather crops in winter.

The proliferation of consumer interest in sustainable agriculture--from safety traceback and sustainability to organic and fairtrade--has created a demand of audits, certifications, labels and other assurances that is radically altering regional farming.

New York's Upstate Niagara Cooperative has decided to go completely hormone-free in 2011, trading chemicals that increase milk production for consumer assurance that no foreign additives will enter their milk supply.

For more organic food news, visit Organic Food News Today (http://organicfood.einnews.com), an organic food media monitoring service from EIN News.