The New Jersey Department of Agriculture today announced that the State Agriculture Development Committee (SADC) has approved $456,122 in cost-sharing grants to help 32 farmer applicants purchase and install deer fencing on preserved farms to protect their crops.
state, so we were very pleased to offer this new deer-fencing program,” Agriculture Secretary Douglas H. Fisher said in a news release.
The grants will help fund the installation of 35 miles ofdeer fencing to protect more than 1,700 acres of preserved farmland. Most of the
approved deer-fencing projects are in high deer-density areas and 96 percent of
the crops to be protected are the highest-value crops (vegetables, orchards and
nurseries).
The matching grants will fund 50 percent of the costs for fencing materials and
installation. The other 50 percent will be paid for by the farmer. The maximum
grant award is $200 per acre of preserved farmland owned or up to $20,000 total.
The grants will be funded from a portion of the SADC’s State farmland
preservation monies allocated to promoting stewardship activities on preserved
farms. The funding is subject to appropriation by the Legislature.
The SADC administers New Jersey’s Farmland PreservationProgram and promotes innovative approaches to maintaining the viability of
agriculture. To date, more than 2,400 farms covering approximately 226,000
acres have been preserved under the State Farmland Preservation Program.
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