(TRENTON, April 1, 2008) – The hundreds of farmers who converged on the State House protesting plans to dismantle the NJ Department of Agriculture included one fifth-generation farmer from Warren County: Freeholder Richard D. Gardner.
Gardner was among the speakers who took to the podium on the State House steps objecting to Gov. Jon Corzine’s proposal, as the crowd of farmers and other supporters waved placards and chanted “Save the Garden State.” Some 119 farm tractors, plus other farm vehicles, lined West State Street in front of the state government buildings.
"Folks, we should not even have to be here if common sense were to be found in the Governor’s administration,” said Gardner, who raises beef cattle, hay and grain on a farm in Franklin Township.
“There are a thousand reasons to keep the Department of Agriculture,” Gardner said. “But the most important reason is maintaining those necessary services the Department provides to all the citizens of New Jersey.”
After mentioning the strong support New Jersey’s neighbors, Pennsylvania and Delaware, give to their agriculture departments, Gardner noted Connecticut closed down its Department of Agriculture, only to reinstate it in recognition of “the important and significant services it provides not just to wholesale agriculture but to all citizens.”
Gardner continued, “Agriculture has a proud and bountiful history in New Jersey, and it continues to thrive in spite of tough times. The farmers who farm in New Jersey today are very committed to their industry and are equally serious about providing wholesome food products for the public.”
“Keep agriculture alive in the Garden State and keep the Department of Agriculture,” Gardner urged.
Farmers from around the state brought some 119 tractors that lined West State Street in front of the State House and other government building, some adorned with signs to make their point.
Speakers at the rally included New Jersey Farm Bureau President Richard Nieuwenhuis, a Warren County resident, and Assemblyman Michael Doherty and Assemblywoman Marcia Karrow, who represent Warren County in the Legislature. A number of farmers from Warren County were in the crowd, estimated by organizers to be about 1,000 people.
Above the speakers, on the State House’s façade, was a bronze sculpture of the State Seal, which includes several symbols referring to the special place agriculture holds in the Garden State. One of the two figures on the seal is Ceres, the Roman goddess of grain, holding a cornucopia filled with harvested produce, symbolizing abundance. The seal includes a shield with three plows on it, showing the importance of agriculture to the state’s economic power, while the head of a horse – the state animal – also is depicted.
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Freeholder Richard D. Gardner addresses the rally at the steps of the State House protesting the plan to dismantle the NJ Department of Agriculture.
The Warren County Board of Chosen Freeholders approved a resolution on March 12 that opposes the Governor’s proposal to eliminate the Department of Agriculture and urging Corzine to reconsider. Copies of the resolution were sent to each New Jersey legislator representing Warren County, the Department of Agriculture, the State Agriculture Development Committee, the New Jersey Farm Bureau, every Board of Chosen Freeholders and every County Agriculture Development Board in the State of New Jersey.
Click here to see the resolution.
The contingent from Warren County joining in the protest included (l-r) Valerie Tishuk of Four Sisters Winery at Matarazzo Farms in White Township, Freeholder Richard D. Gardner and his wife, Janette, who farm in Franklin Township, and Stacy Tillou of Hackettstown.
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