Chronicle Online e-News
Agriculture's impact far more than economic, Cornell research finds
http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/June08/agricu
lture.benefits.sl.html
June 24, 2008
By Susan Lang
ssl4@cornell.edu
Agriculture is important, of course, for generating jobs and income.
But it has a host of non-economic benefits, too, according to a
Cornell study that asked New Yorkers about the value of local
agriculture.
Agriculture improves quality of life, the researchers concluded from
more than 50 people in nine focus groups in three New York counties,
by preserving open spaces for wildlife and bucolic views, providing a
buffer to development and offering recreational access and a local
source of fresh food, while preserving a highly valued heritage and
its traditions.
"There is growing evidence of agriculture's positive impacts on rural
economies," said Duncan Hilchey, a senior extension associate in
development sociology at Cornell. "However, the non-economic benefits
of agriculture for local communities have received comparatively
little attention."
Hilchey and three colleagues have published "The Impact of
Agriculture: It's More Than Economic (Part I and II)," in the Rural
New York Minute, a free monthly online publication produced by
Cornell's Community and Rural Development Institute.
Part I reports on the results from the focus groups. Part II reports
on the findings of two surveys of 620 New York state residents
conducted by Cornell's Survey Research Institute on whether
agriculture in New York was important to them.
Virtually all of the respondents said that agriculture was important,
and while about one-third said that the most important reason was
economic, many cited non-economic reasons.
"Even though the economic impacts of agriculture tend to be the first
to come to many people's minds, about half of the respondents chose
non-economic effects as being the most important," said Gilbert
Gillespie, a senior lecturer in development sociology and a co-author
of the articles. "Identifying and bringing these non-economic
considerations into discussions of issues along with the economic
considerations may be important for mobilizing support of local
agriculture."
"We believe that local public officials should take heed of these
findings," concluded Hilchey, "and weigh carefully any policy
decisions which might negatively affect their farm community, since
our evidence suggests farms, farmers and farmland are key pieces of a
social, economic and environmental mosaic which binds people and
communities together."
Co-authors include David L. Kay, senior extension associate in
development sociology, and R. David Smith, associate professor of
animal science, both at Cornell. The publications can be found online
at
<http://devsoc.cals.cornell.edu/cals/dev
soc/outreach/cardi/publications/minute.cfm>.
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