Mapping potential foodsheds in New York State: A spatial model for evaluating the capacity to localize food production

2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 72-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian J. Peters ◽  
Nelson L. Bills ◽  
Arthur J. Lembo ◽  
Jennifer L. Wilkins ◽  
Gary W. Fick
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Food Production ◽  
Food System ◽  
Local Food ◽  
Average Distance ◽  
New York State ◽  
Production Potential ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
York State ◽  
Food Needs

AbstractGrowing interest in local food has sparked debate about the merits of attempting to reduce the distance food travels. One point of contention is the capacity of local agriculture to meet the food needs of local people. In hopes of informing this debate, this research presents a method for mapping potential foodsheds, land areas that could theoretically feed urban centers. The model was applied to New York State (NYS). Geographic information systems were used to estimate the spatial distribution of food production capacity relative to the food needs of NYS population centers. Optimization tools were then applied to allocate production potential to meet food needs in the minimum distance possible. Overall, the model showed that NYS could provide 34% of its total food needs within an average distance of just 49 km. However, the model did not allocate production potential evenly. Most NYS population centers could have the majority of their food needs sourced in-state, except for the greater New York City (NYC) area. Thus, the study presents a mixed review of the potential for local food systems to reduce the distance food travels. While small- to medium-sized cities of NYS could theoretically meet their food needs within distances two orders of magnitude smaller than the current American food system, NYC must draw on more distant food-producing resources. Nonetheless, the foodshed model provides a successful template for considering the geography of food production and food consumption simultaneously. Such a tool could be valuable for examining how cities might change their food procurement to curb greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to depletion of petroleum and other energy resources necessary for long-distance transport of food.

scholarly journals Great Plains Ladies’-tresses (Spiranthes magnicamporum) in the lower Great Lakes region and a new record for New York State

2015 ◽  
Vol 129 (2) ◽  
pp. 183
Author(s):  
Daniel F. Brunton
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Great Lakes ◽  
Great Plains ◽  
New Records ◽  
New York State ◽  
The United States ◽  
Great Lakes Region ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
York State ◽  
Glacial Relict

Six populations of Great Plains Ladies’-tresses (Spiranthes magnicamporum Sheviak) have recently been discovered in three locations east of the lower Great Lakes region of Canada and the United States. The possible occurrence of S. cernua × magnicamporum hybrids was detected at one New York site. These discoveries are from both natural alvar and disturbed meadow and shore sites. The new records suggest that S. magnicamporum occurs more widely than was suspected previously, its presence perhaps masked by its similarity to the common S. cernua (L.) Richard. Eastern occurrences may represent a combination of post-glacial relict populations, responses to climate change, and the results of long-distance dispersal events. These range extensions constitute the most easterly known populations of S. magnicamporum in North America. They also represent new records for New York State (including Jefferson and St. Lawrence Counties) and for the City of Ottawa in Ontario.

scholarly journals An anomalous detection of Tomato yellow leaf curl virus in tomato in New York State

Plant Disease ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith L. Perry
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Nucleic Acid ◽  
New York State ◽  
Tomato Yellow Leaf ◽  
Yellow Leaf ◽  
Total Nucleic Acid ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Plant Materials ◽  
York State ◽  
Leaf Curl

In August 2020, a New York State vegetable grower sought assistance to identify a malady of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). The plants were grown from saved seed that had been planted annually in NY and/or FL for over 15 years without significant disease problems, but the identity of the cultivar was not known. Submitted photos showed severely stunted plants with distorted leaves (crinkling, cupping, twisting); leaves were reduced in size and showed interveinal yellowing. Although the most likely explanation given the growing region was herbicide damage, the symptoms bore a striking resemblance to those presented by tomato yellow leaf curl (TYLCV)-infected tomato plants. TYLCV has not been reported from NY, as the whitefly vector (Bemisia tabaci) does not overwinter in the region. Stem tissue from a symptomatic plant was grafted onto a greenhouse grown rootstock of tomato breeding line 201231 (Cornell University); shoots emerging from grafted rootstocks showed symptoms consistent with those on the scion within 21 days of grafting. Total nucleic acid was extracted (Gambino et al. 2008), and a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay to detect TYLCV was performed using primers AV632 and AC1048 (Martínez-Culebras et al. 2001). Sanger sequencing of the expected size ~460 bp product from a representative sample showed 98% nucleotide identity with the sequence of over 52 isolates of TYLCV (blastn analysis using default parameters; Altschul et al. 1990). The total nucleic acid preparation was subjected to rolling circle ampification followed by restriction enzyme SphI digestion (Haible et al. 2006). An approximately 2.8 kb DNA fragment was resolved by agarose gel electrophoresis, gel purified, inserted into the cloning vector pUC19 and sequenced. Two clones yielded sequence of 2781 nt with only one nt mismatch (accession # MW373746, MW373747). BLAST analysis showed the sequence to be most closely related to TYLCV-IL from papaya in Texas (accession KX024647.1) with 99% identity (2752 of 2781 nt). Further inquiry revealed that the vegetable grower’s plants had been seeded and grown in Florida prior to transplanting in NY; Florida is a production region where the virus and vectors are endemic. Although the virus has been shown to be associated with seed (Pérez-Padilla et al. 2020) and seed transmission has been reported (Kil et al. 2016), this subject is controversial and the epidemiology of the disease is not consistent with a seed-transmitted virus (Rojas, et al. 2018). In this reported occurrence, the most plausible explanation is that the virus was introduced into NY with transplants. All of the field grown transplants of this cultivar were infected, but no local disease spread in NY was reported, nor were there reports of the vector. The significance of this report is to highlight the importance of phytosanitation in the movement of plants and plant materials. The long-distance movement of TYLCV via infected transplants in the US and globally is well-established. The presence of a pathogen may be transient and their establishment will depend on the epidemiology of the pathogen, in this case, the presence of the vector.

LONG-DISTANCE COMMUTING AND POPULATION CHANGE IN NEW YORK STATE

1987 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 193-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald L. Mitchelson ◽  
James S. Fisher
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Population Change ◽  
New York State ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
York State

Mapping potential foodsheds in New York State by food group: An approach for prioritizing which foods to grow locally

2011 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 125-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian J. Peters ◽  
Nelson L. Bills ◽  
Arthur J. Lembo ◽  
Jennifer L. Wilkins ◽  
Gary W. Fick
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
New York State ◽  
Weight Basis ◽  
Food Groups ◽  
York State ◽  
Regional Food ◽  
Total Food ◽  
Regional Food Systems ◽  
Food Needs

AbstractPublic interest in local food continues to grow, but few analyses have examined the capacity for the US population to be supplied through local and regional food systems. This paper extends earlier work that demonstrated a method for mapping potential foodsheds and estimating the potential for New York to meet the food needs of the state's population centers. It provides a methodology for addressing the question, ‘If land is limited, which foods should be grown locally?’ A spatial model was developed to allocate the available agricultural land of New York State (NYS) to meet in-state food needs for six distinct food groups (grains, vegetables, fruits, dairy, meat and eggs) across the eight largest population centers. An optimization routine was used to allocate land to maximize economic land use value (LUV). Eleven scenarios were examined, ranging from a baseline level of consumption of New York produced foods to a 100% local diet. Across the 11 scenarios, the amount of food supplied, the LUV attained, and the area of land allocated increased as the ‘willingness’ to consume local products increased. This approach dictated that land was preferentially devoted to higher-value food groups relative to lower-value groups, and no scenario used all available land. Under the 100% local scenario, 69% of total food needs (on a fresh weight basis) were supplied in-state with an average food distance of 238 km. This scenario provided food from only four of the six groups, namely, dairy, eggs, fruit and vegetables. These results suggest that a much larger proportion of total food needs (on a weight basis) might be provided from in-state production than was found in previous work. LUV serves as a compelling optimization function, and future work should investigate the degree to which maximizing returns to land complements or conflicts with social and environmental goals of local and regional food systems.

scholarly journals Hunting and the local food movement: Insights from central New York State

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 720-728 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard C. Stedman ◽  
Lincoln R. Larson ◽  
Keith G. Tidball ◽  
Moira Tidball ◽  
Paul D. Curtis
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Local Food ◽  
New York State ◽  
Local Food Movement ◽  
York State ◽  
Central New York ◽  
Food Movement

Differential expenditure patterns of local food system participants

2015 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 139-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Becca B.R. Jablonski ◽  
Todd M. Schmit
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Food System ◽  
Local Food ◽  
New York State ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Local Economy ◽  
Local Market ◽  
Expenditure Patterns ◽  
Local Food System ◽  
Food Sales

AbstractSince 2009 the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has funded over 2600 local food initiatives. However, the economic impacts of these policies remain unclear largely due to data deficiencies that preclude the understanding of differential expenditure patterns of farms participating in these local market channels (both in terms of what inputs they require, and where the inputs are purchased—local or not). This paper utilizes two unique data sets from samples of producers in New York State (NYS) to build expenditure profiles for local food system participants. We employ USDA Agricultural Resource Management Survey data as a robustness check on our results. The primary contribution of this paper is to provide preliminary evidence that local food system participants in NYS have different expenditure patterns than farmers who do not sell through local food markets. We show that farmers with local food sales have higher reliance on local labor and other variable expenses as primary inputs than farms without local food sales, and that local food producers spend a higher percentage of total expenditure in the local economy. Based on our results, we recommend that future economic impact assessments utilize revised expenditure profiles that more accurately reflect inter-industry linkages of the local food sector.

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