North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein isn’t the only one urging the legislature to pass a critical needs budget in the short session. North Carolina Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler says it’s urgent that the state earmark more funds for farmland preservation.
Troxler told members of the N.C. Council of State that North Carolina is losing 100,000 acres of farmland and forest land a year. He called it the biggest issue in agriculture in the state.
North Carolina ranks second in the nation, just behind Texas, for projected farmland loss, according to the American Farmland Trust.
N.C. Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler (Photo: NCGA.gov)Troxler, a Republican from Browns Summit, worries that at the rate rich farmland is disappearing, farmers in the future may have fewer options, even as the world’s growing population needs more food.
“The question is, when do we get to the tipping point?” Troxler asked.
Troxler is planning a big legislative push this year for additional funds dedicated to farmland preservation.
The legislature has allocated $5 million in recurring funds in previous budgets for permanent easements, but Troxler worries the state may not be acting quickly enough.
Permanent easements are subsidies that allow farmers to continue to own and farm their land while agreeing not to allow it to be developed for residential or non-farming commercial use.
“Because we haven’t had a budget in two years, there’s never any [new] one-time money added,” said Troxler. “And that $5 million in recurring [funding] – just to put that in perspective, this year we have requests for $47 million for the permanent easements and 114 applications.”
Dr. Mike Walden, professor emeritus of Agricultural and Resource Economics at NC State University, said it’s a balancing act for North Carolina.
Rural landscapes that once defined places like Holly Springs and Benson are being gobbled up for biotech and manufacturing expansion. And with each new mega-site and job announcement comes a workforce that needs a place to live.
“If we’re still a growing state, and we want people to have access to affordable land and affordable houses, oftentimes that’s going to be those new subdivisions that are built on the exterior of the big cities,” explained Walden. “It’s a tradeoff, and that’s what we pay people in the legislature to try to figure out – what’s the correct side to choose?”
Walden says he recently took note that the small farm off U.S. 401 South in Garner where he has purchased strawberries every season was up for sale.
“We’re sure it’s going to be developed,” he said.
Without a concerted preservation effort, it’s projected that North Carolina could see 1.2 million acres of farmland repurposed in the next 15 years. (Photo: Clayton Henkel/NC Newsline)Foreign adversaries, fertilizer, and the future
In the last legislative session, the N.C. House and N.C. Senate advanced competing bills that would bar “adversarial” foreign governments from holding agricultural land in North Carolina.
Senate Bill 394 specifically defined those adversaries as China, Iran, North Korea and Russia. The intent was to protect the state’s military installations and ensure “farmers are able to produce a safe, abundant, and affordable supply of food and fiber.”
This year, the threat may be more to likely come from developers with deep pockets and from the rising cost of fuel and fertilizer.
Dr. Mike Walden, professor emeritus of Agricultural and Resource Economics at NC State University (Photo: NCSU.edu)It’s estimated that one-third of the world’s fertilizer supply comes through the Strait of Hormuz, which is virtually closed due to the Iran war.
“We’re an economy based on energy, and not only will farmers face higher costs for fertilizer, but they’ll also face higher costs for delivering their products to market,” Walden told Newsline.
Higher costs mean smaller profits, and that may increase the temptation to sell.
North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey said the majority of farms in Guilford County have vanished since he was growing up.
“One of the big reasons I hear from farmers is the high tax rate that farmers are having to pay on that land. And then there’s good offers they get from developers for turning it into housing,” said Causey. “It’s a problem that needs funding and needs to be addressed before it’s too late.”
At the end of March, the N.C. Cooperative Extension and N.C. State will help coordinate the N.C. Farm Succession School, a day-long event to encourage farm families to plan for the future and successfully transition to the next generation.
Without intervention and a concerted preservation effort, it’s projected that North Carolina could see 1.2 million acres of farmland repurposed by 2040, according to UNC-CH researchers and the American Farmland Trust.
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