New York Senators Urge USDA to Purchase Concord Grape Juice to Help Area Farmers

As grape farmers across Western New York face growing uncertainty in the wake of the termination of grape contracts for this season, New York's two U.S. senators are calling on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to purchase Concord grape juice for use by domestic nutrition programs nationwide. One of those two lawmakers made a visit to northern Chautauqua County on Monday. Charles Schumer, who traveled to the Cornell Lake Erie Research and Extension Laboratory in the Town of Portland, says area grape farmers are facing a "squeeze"...

Charles Schumer: they don't have a buyer

Earlier this year, Refresco cancelled contracts with approximately 126 grape farmers in New York and Pennsylvania. Schumer says that, combined with rising costs, have some growers considering abandoning concord grape growing altogether. He says "we can't let that happen" because of the importance of the industry to the region...

Charles Schumer: importance of grape industry

Schumer was joined by impacted farmers, Chautauqua County legislators Fred Johnson and Jason Merritt, plus representatives from the Chautauqua County Farm Bureau, Westfield Maid Cooperative, the Cornell Lake Erie Research and Extension Lab, and the New York Wine and Grape Foundation.

Also on Monday, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand sent a letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, saying that Refresco's cancellation of grape contracts will have a potential domino effect across the regional supply chain, warning that farm failures would have "drastic consequences for the producers themselves, other processors, transporters, and equipment manufacturers as well as negatively impacting the economies of small, rural towns across Western New York." She says it's an "opportune" time for USDA to act, adding that bonus buys have proven to be a "successful tool in stabilizing the market, reducing carryover inventory, and providing fresh juice to schoolchildren and families alike."

Photo by Senator Charles Schumer's Office; audio from Chautauqua County Government