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Dear friends of Massachusetts agriculture: 



Nowhere do the economic trends of the day have any more impact than down on the 

 farm. The costs of planting, growing, shipping and marketing our food supply are 

 dramatically affected by the economy. In spite of tremendous odds, today's farmers 

 are outproducing most every business in the United States. The result is a boon for 

 consumers — the provision of an abundant and reasonably priced food supply. 



This year I have had the privilege of serving as President of the National Asso- ( 

 ciation of State Departments of Agriculture. With the emergence of the "New Federalism", 

 the role of the states in many of our governmental food and farm programs is growing in , 

 significance, and I was pleased to help strengthen the partnerships between the various 

 state agriculture departments and the federal agencies. Clearly, one of the main ! 



strengths of American agriculture is its tremendous diversity. It is essential that 

 we enhance this diversity by promoting agriculture in every region of the country. i 



Here in the Northeast, it may be difficult to convince city folk that agriculture 

 is the number one American industry, but it is a fact that agriculture provides more 

 jobs than any other segment of the U.S. economy. i 



Massachusetts food production is taking on an increasingly important role in our 

 food supply picture. With fuel and transportation costs on the rise, growing food for J 

 nearby markets makes more sense each year. Preliminary statistics for vegetable produc- | 

 tion in 1981 are promising. The sweet corn crop was four per cent larger than the I 

 previous year. The tomato and cabbage crops showed similar increases in both acreage 

 and yield per acre. 



Notwithstanding a reduction in federal price support levels, milk production has 

 also increased, with production for the last quarter of 1981 showing a four per cent 

 increase over the production of the same quarter a year earlier. And of course, cran- 

 berries remain our number one success story with Massachusetts producing nearly one 

 half of the nation's output. 



For many years, agriculture has been viewed as the forgotten industry in our i 

 "industrial state", but times are changing. More and more suburban and city residents 

 are realizing the irreplaceable value of our farmland and are supporting efforts to 

 keep the land in production. 



i 

 The Department continues to work hard to encourage a healthy agricultural indus- 



ry through enlightened regulation, energetic market promotion and farmland protection. 



You will find from reading this annual report what the Department is doing to meet 



these goals. 



For the statistical report in this publication, we are indebted to the staff of 

 the New England Crop and Livestock Reporting Service, who compiled the charts and 

 statistics under the direction of Charles Hammond and Rowland Scranton. Many thanks 

 to all who have helped in this review of the agricultural industry in Massachusetts. 



Sincerely, 





( Frederic Winthrop, Jr. 

 Commissioner 



