Regional farmers opt for ‘dot-plow’ By BRYAN F. YURCAN

Regional farmers opt for ‘dot-plow’
By BRYAN F. YURCAN

Fiber-optic cables and strawberry vines may not be a traditional pairing, but more and more savvy farmers are integrating online innovations into their businesses.

In fact, farmers in New York and the Northeast in general lead the nation in Internet access and in using computers to run their business, according to a portion of a study titled The Digital Economy, released this year by the Ewing Kauffman Foundation.

The report, which cited various data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, found that farmers in the Northeast and the Pacific Northwest led the nation in the use of computers and access to the Internet. Southern states generally fell near the bottom.

“While agriculture accounts for less than 5 percent of employment, in many states it remains an important part of the economy,” reads a portion of the report. “Farmers and ranchers increasingly use the Internet to buy feed and seed, check on weather conditions, obtain the latest technical information, and even to sell their livestock and crops.”

In 2005, 51 percent of farms had access to the Internet, compared with 29 percent in 1999, the study shows.

In the Hudson Valley in particular, using the Internet as a marketing tool is increasing among farmers.

“Especially in the Hudson Valley, farmers rely on Web sites to sell and buy,” says Peter Gregg, director of public relations for the New York Farm Bureau. “A lot of the so-called specialty crops in the Hudson Valley like apple orchards, ‘pick your own’ farms, and wineries use the Internet to promote their business.”

Many patrons of Hudson Valley farms are weekenders from the New York metropolitan area who drive north, or residents who order food online, so a strong Web presence is essential, Gregg said.

Easy access to high-speed Internet is another advantage Hudson Valley farmers enjoy.

“It’s lousy for other, more rural areas in New York,” such as the North Country and central New York, he said. “They have no options other than dial up.”

Besides Web access, computers have a multitude of other uses on the farm, said Gregg.

“Most farm operations use a computer to keep inventory, to do bookkeeping, and for quick communications,” he said.

One such farmer is Rod Dressel Jr., whose family owns and operates Dressel Farms in New Paltz.

“We use it as much as a resource as we do a marketing tool,” he said. “We have five chairs and five computers in the office. We use them for inventory purposes, we have accounting software, and we use one for bookkeeping.”

Dressel Farms is a wholesale and retail distributor of primarily apples, but it also grows strawberries, sweet cherries, peaches, pears and pumpkins.

About 85 percent of its business is wholesale sales to grocery stores, Dressel said, and 15 percent is through an on-site farm store.

Since the farm store does not have set hours, the Web site, www.dresselfarms.com, is helpful to let people know Dressel Farms’ hours of operation, Dressel said.

The farm also uses its Web site to keep retailers abreast of what crops are available and what produce is in season.

The Dressels are in the process of updating their site, as it requires constant upkeep.

“It’s not like putting an ad in the Yellow Pages, (the Web site) needs constant maintenance, but it’s opened up a whole new world for us,” said Dressel.

Since the Hudson Valley attracts so many out-of-towners coming to visit the area’s many historic sites and parkland, it is helpful for local farmers to have a Web presence to help draw business from the area’s tourists, said Marilyn Howard, a senior field advisor with the state Farm Bureau whose area includes most of the lower to middle Hudson Valley.

“People from the city come here to see the historical sites and other things, and they use the Internet to find out about locals farms,” she said. “Some of the farmers’ markets are on major highways; all of these places have Web sites so visitors can see where to go.”

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