The fight to keep small farms alive in Central New York

For more than a decade, Carl Helgerson and his wife, Sanela Delic Helgerson, co-owners of Flippity Flap Farms in Manlius, have been organically farming small-scale, right in their own backyard. 

From poultry to meat rabbits, the small farm has expanded from its early days of solely growing organic produce. Their emphasis is on supporting local farmers and real, healthy food.  

But despite their dedication, the pair is finding it difficult to compete in the changing landscape of farming in Central New York, as small farms continue to decline in the state.  

“Small farms are disappearing and everything is just becoming huge, industrial farms. We can’t even compete at the farmer’s market,”” Carl Helgerson said. 

As of right now, the owners of Flippity Flap Farms cannot afford to just be farmers. Sanela works as a nanny, while Carl does reselling on the side. They face a high burden of cost without the resources and assistance provided by other states.  

“The prices we can’t compete with, the scale, the amount of things that they have that they are able to produce at such a low cost. Everything that we produce, we do on a small scale, so everything just costs more for us,” Sanela Delic Helgerson said.  

With the number of small farms in New York in continuous decline, upstate farmers are concerned about the future of agriculture in the state. According to the most recent Census of Agriculture, 2,788 farms and 363,885 acres of farmland were lost from 2017 to 2022.

The Farm Bill, originally passed in 2018 to aid struggling farmers, also expired on Oct. 1 and there is no timeline for when Congress will pass a new one. 

With a steady decrease in the number of small farms and the expiration of the Farm Bill, there are concerns that the environment and sustainability of the food system in Central New York could suffer.  

“We should be growing organically. The things that they’re growing now, they’re ruining the land. We’re not going to be able to grow food like this forever, and it’s coming to a crash soon,” Carl Helgerson said.  

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, farms with over 500 acres have increased as they absorb failing small farms. The shift away from organic practices as large farms take over could decrease the health of the land and the sustainable food production of local communities. 

As the decline of small farms continues, the lack of support for local farmers creates concerns about food quality.  

Photo courtesy of Flippity Flap Farms

Organic tomatoes grown at small, local farms like Flippity Flap Farms are under threat as the number of local farms in New York continues to dwindle.

“There are greater nutrients in local and fresh. We need facilities that will allow greater aggregation of food and through that the processing of food,” Janet Oppedisano, agriculture team leader at Cornell Cooperative Extension, said.    

A USDA report released in Feb. 2024 showed an 8% decline in the number of small farms. The financial realities of maintaining a farm in the market complicate these concerns, especially following the expiration of the Farm Bill. 

Profit margins are slim, and many small farmers find it challenging to keep their businesses afloat amidst rising costs and competition.  

“Tougher economic times make it hard for a small farm to survive,” Bailey Coon, County Manager at the New York Farm Bureau, said.  “Increase in inputs like fuel, seed, the things that it takes to produce goods and services, and agriculture have gone up extremely high. You’re not getting the profits that you used to as a small farm.”  

The current economic environment also creates problems for aspiring farmers. As the average age of farmers rises, many are retiring, leaving a gap in the local food system. 

The increased land price deters young individuals from entering the market, increasing the decline of small-scale farming.  

“If you were a new farmer, young or just beginning and looking to try to purchase land, those prices are obviously much higher than they would have been 10 years ago,”  Coon said. “It’s a lot harder to get into the market, just because of those barriers.”  

The House and the Senate have released drafts of a new farm bill, but no action has been taken as of now.  

“At this rate, small farming is going to be gone,”Carl Helgerson said.