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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02/19/2016 Economic Development Committee Meeting February 19, 2016 In Attendance: Carolyn Fahey, Sara Garretson, Steven Latham, John McLane, William Ruland, Rona Smith, John Stype Excused: Donielle Cardinale, Tony Cocheo th January 26 Meeting Minutes  Guest Speaker: Robert Carpenter of Long Island Farm Bureau  Guest Speaker: Dale Moyer of Cornell University Cooperative Extension  Amagansett Food Institute  Luncheon Discussion  th January 26 Meeting Minutes The January 26, 2016 meeting minutes were accepted by all committee members. Guest Speakers Robert Carpenter and Dale Moyer The Economic Development Committee seeks to foster job creation and growth of business in Southold Town. They have asked Robert Carpenter and Dale Moyer to speak about the agricultural industry and want to know ways to market agriculture. Points from the discussion are: Overregulation is the biggest issue faced by farmers in general  The support of the Town is needed to ease regulation on farmers in general  Pesticide Safety is both time consuming and a costly proposition  Access of Water – What can be done to use a private water supply versus getting public water,  there should be an economic way to deal with regulations Persistence – Southold Town Farmers themselves carry more weight when bringing attention to  issues Smaller Septic System versus One Large Facility will trigger far more regulations  Apply for cost share money from Peconic Land Trust – going to be more of a need as small more  small farmers come in with specialty products Zoning is not an issue – ability for Towns and County to preserve the farm land, with that comes  restrictions and development rights, the County is allowed one thousand feet of processing or retail space Food Safety – Growers have to do own record keeping, water testing, grocery stores are  requiring third party audits. This is an issue that a lot of farmers are addressing, adds burden/cost, pertains to anyone growing edible products if you want to sell to grocery stores, farmers are asked to comply and absorb Food Safety Modernization Act is working to address food safety issues that are becoming a  problem Food Hub – Farmers can bring product for distribution, processing, both, storage space, packing  for CSA Farmers need to be educated on the better marketing of their products themselves  Amagansett Food Institute The EDC would like to invite the Amagansett Food Institute to a future meeting. This  organization is made up multiple aspects of the food industry including farmers, restaurants, and distributors Amagansett Food Institute will be a good source in helping to identify local agricultural issues  among smaller farmers Luncheon Discussion  The EDC first discussed holding an agricultural forum where each participant would go to their own topic  Brainstorming led to the idea of hosting a working lunch  A strong agenda must be created with structured dialogue  The initial role is to bring the stakeholders together, people who make things happen in the local agricultural economy, a way to network  The luncheon would be a collaboration of growers, food distributors, etc. All of whom have needs that the other can satisfy  An additional meeting to discuss the Luncheon will be scheduled for March 3, 2016 in the Town Hall Conference Room from 3:30-53:30 p.m. Meeting concluded at 6 pm.