Photos by Tom Rivers – Lynn Hill served as auctioneer Saturday during the first ever turkey auction, featuring birds raised by 4-H’ers. The 21 turkeys sold for a combined $1,585. Skip Lear, left, helped Hill with the auction.

Claudia Dreschel of Holley created a display at the auction, showing pictures of herself with her turkeys.

KNOWLESVILLE – The debut turkey auction by the Orleans County 4-H program resulted in $1,585 in sales for 21 turkeys, and many happy buyers who will have locally raised meat for Thanksgiving.

Twelve 4-H’ers raised the turkeys over four months. The birds at the auction ranged from 17 to 34 pounds. They all sold for at least $60 with three at $100 or more.

The 4-H Market Auction Committee pushed to start the auction this year. The committee hoped the turkeys would sell for an average of $75. The average price on Saturday: $75.48.

The 4-H program would like to make the turkey auction an annual tradition, and would like to see more bidders buy turkeys from local 4-H’ers.

Alan and Guin Panek of Albion bought three turkeys at the auction. They will have 60 people over for Thanksgiving.

“We wanted to support the 4-H program,” said Mrs. Panek, a former 4-H educator. “We know these turkeys are locally raised, they’re healthy and fresh.”

The Paneks bid the highest amount at the auction, $150 for a 34-pound turkey raised by Nicole Mrzywka of Holley.

Dona Scharping, in front of Lynn Hill, holds up a yellow card to show she is bidding on a turkey. She bought one for $65 that was raised by Zachary Moore of Albion.

The Orleans County Fair Committee bought one of the turkeys to be donated to a local food pantry. Barb Kurzowski also bought a turkey and donated it a food pantry.

Many of the 4-H’ers have been raising animals for years, but typically they are larger livestock.

“They’re really nice when they are babies,” Janie Schutz, 17, of Waterport said about the turkeys.

But birds became more aggressive as they get older. She and her sister Rylie Lear, 13, prefer working with beef cattle.

“You bond more with your cows than your turkeys,” Schutz said.

The 4-H’ers fed the turkeys at least 2 pounds of a grain-based feed a day. They needed lots of water and clean conditions.

Claudia Dreschel, 14, of Holley and her brother Andrew raised eight turkeys, with four sold at the auction. They estimated it cost $50 in feed for each turkey over four months.

“It’s definitely been a learning experience,” Claudia said. “They eat a lot and they can make a mess very fast.”

Guin and Alan Panek of Albion bid on a turkey during the auction on Saturday. They bought three birds, including the highest bid of the night, $150 for a turkey raised by Nicole Mrzywka of Holley.

Provided photos – Natalie Mrzywka, 15, of Holley is raising turkeys for the auction on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. She helped build a new coop for the turkeys.

KNOWLESVILLE – Several 4-H youths have been raising turkeys the past four months that will be auctioned off at a sale Saturday at the 4-H Fairgrounds.

The turkey auction is new for the 4-H program, which has a meat auction during the fair in July.

The auction on Saturday with 22 turkeys gives the public a chance to buy turkeys before Thanksgiving while also supporting local 4-H youths.

There will be a preview of the turkeys beginning at 6 p.m. at the Trolley building on Route 31 with the auction starting at 6:30.

In addition the 4-H Market Auction Committee will be hosting a spaghetti dinner starting at 6 p.m. Tickets for the dinner cost $8 and children’s size (half portions) can be purchased for $4.

Nicole Mrzywka, 12, also joined in raising turkeys for the auction.

“The work that the 4-H members have put into these projects is apparent and they would greatly appreciate your support,” said Kerri Richardson, a community education coordinator for the Cornell Cooperative Extension.

The auction is a “win-win-win” program for Orleans County 4-H, its youth, and community members, she said.

“The 4-H’ers win from the learning experience: taking on the responsibility of raising high quality livestock and developing a marketing technique for its sale, and obtaining funds for college or for future projects,” she said.

The turkey buyers are purchasing fresh, locally grown turkeys for their Thanksgiving dinner, while the 4-H community benefits from the sales of the spaghetti dinner tickets. Ticket funds are used for future 4-H market auction educational programs.

For more information, call the Extension at (585) 798-4265.

Press release, American Farm Bureau Federation

The American Farm Bureau Federation’s 28th annual informal price survey of classic items found on the Thanksgiving Day dinner table indicates the average cost of this year’s feast for 10 is $49.04, a 44-cent price decrease from last year’s average of $49.48.

“The cost of this year’s meal, at less than $5 per serving, remains an excellent value for consumers,” said AFBF President Bob Stallman, a rice and cattle producer from Texas. “America’s farm and ranch families are honored to produce the food from our nation’s land for family Thanksgiving celebrations.”

The AFBF survey shopping list includes turkey, bread stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls with butter, peas, cranberries, a relish tray of carrots and celery, pumpkin pie with whipped cream, and beverages of coffee and milk, all in quantities sufficient to serve a family of 10. There is also plenty for leftovers.

The big ticket item – a 16-pound turkey – came in at $21.76 this year. That was roughly $1.36 per pound, a decrease of about 3 cents per pound, or a total of 47 cents per whole turkey, compared to 2012. The whole bird was the biggest contributor to the final total, showing the largest price decrease compared to last year.

In addition to the turkey, other items that declined in price included a dozen brown-n-serve rolls, $2.18; one pound of green peas, $1.54; a 14-ounce package of cubed bread stuffing, $2.67; fresh cranberries, $2.42; a half pint of whipping cream, $1.85; and two nine-inch pie shells, $2.49.

Items that showed a moderate price increase from last year included three pounds of sweet potatoes, $3.36; one gallon of whole milk, $3.66; and a 30-ounce can of pumpkin pie mix, $3.10.

Dry cider is coming back strong in the United States, a resurgence highlighted in the New York Times on Friday.

The newspaper also sampled many dry ciders and a panel of taste-testers listed Steampunk Cider as the No. 2 of them all. Steampunk is made by the Leonard Oakes Estate Winery in Medina.

“It was fresh and tangy with a honeyed character that reminded me of chenin blanc,” said NYT writer Eric Asimov. “It was also, at $11, our best value.”

To see the full article, click here.

The Orleans County Farmers’ Market was going to end its season in Albion last Saturday, but the market day was cancelled due to high winds.

Farmers aren’t going to call it a season yet. They will be back for a final day this Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Save-A-Lot parking lot.

Vendors will also be in Medina in the Canal Basin from noon to 5 p.m. on Thursday for the last time this season. Trick-or-treaters are welcome to stop by around 5 to visit the farmers, said Ann Nice, one of the vendors.

“We continue to have plenty of farm fresh fall produce and products,” Nice said. “Thank you to all our customers. We look forward to growing for you in 2014.”

Photo by Tom Rivers – Brown’s Berry Patch is selling the new RubyFrost apple that is being released to the public for the first time this fall. Several other local farm markets are selling the apple.

WATERPORT – A month ago local apple growers introduced consumers to the new SnapDragon apple. Those farmers quickly sold out of the variety, which has been promoted heavily in the media.

Growers have another new apple, RubyFrost, which matures later in the season. That apple has been picked and many growers are selling it at local markets. RubyFrost is a red apple that tastes sweet and tart. It is compared to Empire and Granny Smith varieties.

RubyFrost is a hard apple to bite, I can attest to that. I tried one for the first time today at Brown’s Berry Patch. Growers are excited about the apple because it stores well. Nutritionists say it will provide a boost of vitamin C well into winter.

RubyFrost and SnapDragon have been more than a decade in the making. They were developed by Cornell researchers. A new organization that consists only of New York apple growers, NYAG LLC, was formed to sign up farmers to grow the crop on limited acres so there wouldn’t be an oversupply, leading to crashing prices for growers.

The new apples are being released through farm markets this fall and next year. The apples won’t be readily available in grocery stores until 2015 when recent plantings have a full crop.

Photo by Tom Rivers – Hay bales sit in a farm field on Route 279 in the town of Gaines.

The farm community is cheering legislation signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday that caps assessments for agricultural land to no more than 2 percent increases annually.

Farmers have been vocal in recent years about their property taxes, which are the second highest in the country and more than triple the national average, according to New York Farm Bureau.

“The 2 percent agricultural assessment cap has long been a priority for New York Farm Bureau,” said Dean Norton, NYFB president. “It is a big step forward in reducing the increasing property tax burden that has limited our farmers’ ability to grow.”

Several agricultural groups pushed the state to enact a cap on ag assessments, including Farm Credit East, the New York Wine and Grape Foundation, the New York Apple Association, the New York Corn and Soybean Growers Association and the Northeast Dairy Producers Association.

“The 2 percent agricultural assessment cap is vital to preserving New York’s family farms,” said Dale Stein of Le Roy, a board member for the Dairy Producers. “Without this cap, tax costs will escalate to an unaffordable level for the farms and force many family farms out of business.”

State Sen. George Maziarz supported a cap on ag assessments. The Senate and Assembly both approved the legislation.

“We are striving to make it easier to keep farms in operation, and we can do that by preventing them from drowning in a tidal wave of new taxes,” Maziarz said.

Photo by Tom Rivers – Some beef cattle are pictured in Carlton back in April.

The federal budget isn’t the only deadline that passed on Sept. 30 without an agreement in Congress. The legislative body also failed to act on the Farm Bill, which sets the nation’s agricultural policy.

The Farm Bill is usually renewed in five-year agreements. Congress was unable to approve a five-year deal in 2012 and instead opted for a one-year extension. That expired on Monday.

“Only this time, the likelihood of a one-year extension seems remote,” said Dean Norton, the New York Farm Bureau president. “This only raises the uncertainty level on our farms that are looking to plan ahead for next year as the current harvest season enters its final stages. How does any business set a budget, purchase supplies, or make hiring decisions without having some idea of what governmental policies are in place that have a direct impact on what they do day-in and day-out?”

Norton is in Washington, D.C., urging lawmakers to move on the Farm Bill.

“Without it, our dairies are put in an especially vulnerable position if volatile milk prices swing too low,” he said. “This will continue to leave many of New York’s important fruit and vegetable growers without a reasonable safety net as well. In addition, a number of other cost saving reforms and vital programs will be cast aside if there is no movement to secure a responsible farm policy in the next few months.”

The Farm Bill doesn’t just affect farmers. Consumers could see higher prices and reduced access to local food, Norton said.

Bob Stallman, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, said Farm Bureau members throughout the country are “deeply concerned over the political challenges that are making it next to impossible for Congress to reach a compromise on important legislation.”

Farm Bureau wants to see a Farm Bill that provides a safety net for farm products and other risk management tools as farmers plan for next year’s crop, Stallman said in a statement.

“Farm Bureau is encouraging Congress and President Obama to work together to get the budget process in order, get our national economy back on track and move forward on legislation important to agriculture, such as the Farm Bill, immigration and tax reform and waterways funding,” he said.

ALBANY – Gov. Andrew Cuomo has finally signed an expanded Niagara Wine Trail into law, a measure that could be a significant benefit to Orleans County.

The Niagara Wine Trail ran along Route 104 mostly in Niagara County. It reached into Orleans to include the Leonard Oakes Estate Winery near the western end of Ridgeway. But it couldn’t keep moving east, without a change in the state law.

Several groups, including the wine industry, have tried for years to extend the wine trail. The State Senate was the first to go for it, but the Assembly didn’t agree until this year.

The Assembly and Senate both voted in favor of the measure. It seemed a done deal back in June. Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s signature seemed a no-brainer.

This trail is expected to be a tourism boost for Western New York. It will stretch from Niagara Falls through Orleans and into Monroe County. It also will run south from the Falls area into Erie County.

I’ve been watching this for nearly four months now, wondering why it was taking the governor so long, especially with all of his talk about creating jobs, promoting New York and agriculture, and the need for more state attention for Western New York. We lost the summer, a chance to rev up our tourism engine while this sat on his desk.

The governor finally summoned the strength to sign this last week.

The legislation expands and renames the Niagara Wine Trail system. The new configuration, which takes effect immediately, extends the trail across all of Orleans County and into western Monroe County, encompassing more wineries.

We in Orleans can piggyback on this trail and create other trails. A “Cobblestone Trail” on 104 makes a lot of sense. We might consider trails for farm markets, Medina sandstone and perhaps other historic sites.

We can tap into the tourism promotion dollars in Monroe County, Rochester, Buffalo and Erie County. This could be big for Orleans.

The trail will run on Route 104 between the Ferry Avenue/Route 62 intersection in Niagara Falls and Route 390 in Monroe County. That will be known as “Niagara Wine Trail Ridge.”

The complement to the Ridge route is the “Niagara Wine Trail Lake,” which follows Route 269 north from its intersection with Route 104 at the Niagara-Orleans County Line to Route 18. It then runs west to Route 425, then south to Route 62 and along that route until its intersection with I-290 in Amherst.

Seventeen wineries are on the trail now and more are under development. The money to pay for additional signage on an expanded trail system has already been earmarked through a 2011 Regional Economic Development Council Award. The expansion imposes no new costs to taxpayers.

The governor also signed legislation for three other wine trails, giving the state 16 such trails.

The state expanded the “Shawangunk East Wine Trail” in Ulster County. New York established the “Adirondack Coast Wine Trail” that runs from the Town of Peru into the Town of Plattsburgh. The “Chautauqua Wine Trail” will be renamed the “Lake Erie Wine Country Trail.” The route will remain unchanged.

The state also approved new legislation allowing New York wineries to sell wine from roadside farm markets if the product was made within 20 miles of the roadside farm market.