Ex-Tobacco Farms at Risk Of Withering As Aid Ends

Source from:  Washington Post Staff Writer 02/20/2009

Next year, many of Maryland's former tobacco farmers will receive their last buyout checks from the state, prompting concern about a widespread sell-off of farmland if funding is not continued for agricultural development and land preservation programs. The 10-year buyout program uses money from the settlement of a national lawsuit against tobacco companies to pay tobacco farmers to switch crops or to raise livestock. Most of Maryland's tobacco farmers signed up for the program in its first two years and can expect to receive their last buyout checks in the next two years. Although some farmers in Southern Maryland have switched to other crops and keep their farms profitable, many depend on the buyout checks, according to a report released Tuesday by the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission. Once the checks stop arriving, some farmers might be forced to sell their farms, officials said. "I think some are more ready than others," said Christine L. Bergmark, executive director of the commission. "A transition like this takes a lot longer than 10 years." Since the commission was formed in 2000, it has aided hundreds of former tobacco farmers and helped preserve more than 22,000 acres of agricultural land, forests and wetlands in the five counties it serves -- Charles, St. Mary's, Calvert, Prince George's and Anne Arundel. In October, the commission had to cut its 2009 budget by $1.5 million, which halted development of new programs, Bergmark said. The commission has also had to slice $1.5 million from its 2010 budget. That will come out of its land preservation fund, although the loss could be offset by additional bond funds, she said. "As long as we don't get another budget cut, we should be able to continue what we are doing," Bergmark said. In addition to assisting farmers through educational programs and grants, the commission encourages residents to buy locally grown food and other products. The commission has also launched programs about farming for grade-school children. The 44-page report notes several agricultural success stories in the region, such as that of Joe and Mary Wood of Forrest Hall Farm in St. Mary's County. With help from their buyout checks and a grant from the commission, the Woods have converted their tobacco farm, which had been in the family for nearly a century, into a tourist destination. Visitors can navigate a corn maze, pick strawberries or apples, visit a vineyard, pet farm animals and shop at the farm's store. After years of work and investment, Mary Wood said, the family is finally making the same amount of money it did when it grew tobacco. The Woods were among the commission's first grant recipients, so their success does not necessarily reflect the experience of the average Southern Maryland farmer. "The stark reality is that many local farms may still fade away when payouts cease as farmers retire and sell the family farm," the report says. But, it says, with continued support, those farms "are poised to flourish for generations to come." Enditem