‘Blame Trump’s Tariffs and the Weather. New York’s Farmers Do.’
“A drought, flash floods, the trade war and tightening immigration policy have combined to cause an economic crisis for New York farmers.”
For The New York Times, 2018
Peter Martens’s farm in Penn Yan, N.Y. Like farmers across the state, Mr. Martens is struggling under the weight of this summer’s extreme weather, a trade war and tightened immigration policies.
Peter Martens stands for a portrait at Martens Farm in Penn Yan, N.Y. on Wednesday, August 15, 2018. Martens grew up on the same land as his father Klaas, and they now work the farm together.
Dale Stein, a dairy farmer in Le Roy, N.Y., stands amid corn stalks that most years are nearly twice as tall. “It’s a compounded problem this year,” he said. “And I think it’s got an awful lot of farmers saying ‘I’m done.’”
Klaas Martens looks out at his cows after checking on a newborn calf at Martens Farm in Penn Yan, N.Y. on Wednesday, August 15, 2018. Martens grew up farming and moved to this land when he was two years old.
Brian Draper, center, and Kevin Boss, top left, Bersain Domingez, top center, run the milking machinery at Stein Family Farms in Le Roy, N.Y.
Ducks at the Martens Farm in Penn Yan, N.Y.
Richard Sutherland's rugby shorts and muck boot combination are his regular work attire, photographed at Stein Family Farms in Le Roy. Sutherland is from New Zealand, but moved to the U.S. to work on the farm with his wife Natasha Sutherland, who is one of the youngest owners in the Stein family operation.
A mother Holstein cow licks her newborn calf, born only moments ago, at Stein Family Farms in Le Roy, N.Y. on Tuesday, August 14, 2018. The mother and calf have a few moments together before being separated and the mother is put back into the milking rotation within 24 hours. Animals are kept pregnant much of the time to allow for maximum milk production, and are given a "vacation" during part of their pregnancy.
Natasha Sutherland pushes cows down an aisle to move them during a routine weekly veterinary visit at Stein Family Farms in Le Roy, N.Y. on Tuesday, August 14, 2018. Sutherland is a ninth-generation farmer on her mother's side and a sixth-generation farmer on her father's side. She said she tried many other professions but farming is her favorite.
Peter Martens works to fix a jammed grain bin unloader at Martens Farm in Penn Yan, N.Y.
Peter and Klaas Martens work together on their farm.
Sierra Ellis works on ten-wheeler truck in the machine shop at Stein Family Farms in Le Roy, N.Y. on Tuesday, August 14, 2018. The machine shop staff at the farm makes or fixes the majority of their equipment and steel in-house at their own facility.
Barn cat Tucker stretches on a piece of machinery at Stein Family Farms in Le Roy, N.Y. on Tuesday, August 14, 2018.