In 2026, the Department is proud to celebrate the 30-year anniversary of the Farmland Protection Implementation Grants Program.   As we look back at how the program started and what has been accomplished so far, we are excited for the future as the program continues to be a priority for the Department, partner organizations, and the agricultural community.

The Agricultural and Farmland Protection Program is rooted in the Agricultural Protection Act of 1992. It expanded two years later, in 1996, to formally offer funding through the Implementation Grants to purchase agricultural conservation easements from farmers that would protect valuable, at-risk farmland from future non-agricultural use. 

Over the years, the program has grown and changed, all the while maintaining its core mission to ensure that farmland is forever used for agriculture.  The program saw adjustments and many enhancements along the way, from streamlining the applications and awards of the grants, to launching the first-ever regionally targeted round of the program, to offering historic levels of funding.   The program also saw advancements that allowed the Department to be responsive to the specific needs of the industry, helping farms that were facing challenges from low dairy prices, trade disputes, increasing debt, changing consumer preferences, and climate change.

In 2023, during Earth Week, New York State announced it had reached a significant milestone in protecting more than 107,000 acres of New York farmland through completed conservation easement projects.

Today, the Farmland Protection program continues to grow, making a lasting impact on New York’s farmers and the agricultural industry with more than 138,535 acres of New York farmland preserved through completed conservation easement projects, totaling over $350.7 million on 465 farms.  A record level of funding of $67 million is currently available, boosted with additional funding from the Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act.