Note: Click here to go to the NNYADP-funded series of agricultural tile and water quality research that is drawing widespread interest from  the farming and conservation communities.

February 5, 2026.  A Tile Drainage Survey, partially funded by the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program, is being conducted by Cornell CALS PRO-DAIRY and Nutrient Management Spear Programs and the William H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute.

The goal of the survey is to quantify the extent of tile drainage on farms, and the ways and reasons it is utilized on farms, and to understand the benefits and challenges of this practice on crop production and related field practices.

This survey should take roughly 15 minutes to complete. You may stop the survey at any time and will not be required to submit responses if you chose not to continue. All information will be kept anonymous and aggregated. If you share your email address at the end of the survey to get a copy of the survey results (optional), it will not be associated with your responses to the survey questions.

For questions about the survey, contact: Kirsten Workman, Cornell PRO-DAIRY and the Nutrient Management Spear Program, kw566@cornell.edu, or Allen Wilder, Agronomist, Miner Institute, wilder@whminer.com.

Click this link to go to the survey:
https://cornell.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9nogL2dQ6CXxEeq

NNYADP Annual Report Highlights Research for “Building into Northern New York’s Agricultural Future”

Northern New York; January 27, 2026. The farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program has published its 2025 annual report, titled “Building into the Future.” The report highlights the small grants program’s recent farm-based research results related to farm economic and environmental sustainability. Funding for the program is supported by the New York State Legislature through the New York State Assembly and is administrated by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.

More than $1.17 billion in agricultural sales makes northern New York the second highest region in the state for agricultural sales (NYS Comptroller’s Report).

New York State Assembly Agriculture Chair Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo said, “The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is a model for strategic investment in cutting-edge research, focusing on farm sustainability, local foods, and more. The North Country is a vitally important part of the state’s agricultural economy and certainly merits this type of investment.”

Northern New York Agricultural Development Program Co-Chair Joseph Giroux, Plattsburgh, said, “The funding from the New York State Legislature in support of the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program drives our shared mission to continue to grow and maintain northern New York’s unique landbase, and agricultural and natural resources as a farm-based economic powerhouse for our communities and for the state.

The 2025 NNYADP report highlights advances in agricultural environmental stewardship related to water quality and the use of tile drainage, environmentally-friendly soil health, and research underway to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program often supports successful first-time or proof-of-concept projects, the results of which attract larger funding to move the research statewide or nationally. The 2025 report includes a successful and first season-long trial of a new way to manage the horticultural crop pest swede midge and a pilot project evaluating how a farm’s specific growing environment impacts the value of dairy feed crops.

Dairy owner Dan Chambers of Chambers Farm, Heuvelton, said, “We need the Northern New York Agricultural Development program’s new ideas and research that prove out what may otherwise be just a ‘sales pitch.’ This kind of research helps enhance cow health and farm economics.”

NNYADP small grants research that has occurred alongside the exponential growth of northern New York’s maple industry includes a recent and successful do-it-yourself (DIY) experimental project for keeping sap cool to maintain sap quality in warmer spring seasons.

Regional microclimate adaptability is the focus for two NNYADP projects: one related to northern New York’s variable growing conditions that challenge apple growers in the critical spring season, and the addition of chestnuts and cold-hardy pecans to the NNYADP new crops and “super fruits” research.

Indicators of agricultural economic growth, including new dairy, maple, poultry, and produce, enterprises and farm-to-school expansion efforts, are noted in the NNYADP 2025 report posted at nnyagdev.org.

Northern New York Agricultural Development Program Co-Chair Jon Greenwood adds, “This 2025 report once again illustrates how the New York State Legislature and the farmers of Northern New York are working together to advance the agricultural economy regionally with benefits statewide and beyond.”
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The results of NNYADP projects are posted by year on this website.

Lake Placid, New York; January 15, 2026.  The potential for warmer spring temperatures during maple season causes concern for how to keep sap cool. With a grant from the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program, Uihlein Maple Research Forest Director Adam Wild successfully built do-it-yourself (DIY) sap cooling systems. Wild has published the results of the proof-of-concept project in a “Chilling Maple Sap” information bulletin and a “How to Build a Maple Sap Chiller” guide.

“This project has value for maple producers statewide. The flavor and quality of maple syrup is directly related to sap quality. The ability to chill and hold maple sap prevents spoilage and adds flexibility for producers to boil sap at their convenience, particularly for those producers who also operate dairy farms or have off-farm jobs,” Wild said.

To build the chillers (see photos below), Wild adapted window-size air conditioning units and connected plastic picnic coolers holding a food-grade glycol solution. The units were tested in combination with a submersible wine chilling plate in a stainless steel tank, a 20-plate heat exchanger used with a reverse osmosis pump and a 1,500-gallon, insulated dairy tank with its own cooling plates and supply and return lines. The Upper Hudson Maple Producers Association provided the dairy tank for the testing.

“The use of glycol chilling can be a less expensive alternative to refrigeration for keeping sap cool. The chillers built for this project were extremely effective, providing efficiency in processing the sap at Uihlein with 40 percent less boiling and saving more than 24 hours of labor for post-boil cleanup,” Wild said.

Wild estimates the cost to build the individual chiller units at $300 to $1400.

The “Chilling Maple Sap” information bulletin by Wild includes information on the cooling efficiency of food-grade glycol, freezing points, and how to size a DIY or a purchased chilling system to fit different maple operations.

The “How to Build a Maple Sap Chiller” DIY step-by-step guide includes safety tips, a parts list, cost estimates, photos, and optional add-ons. An added convenience option noted in the how-to guide is the use of Wi-Fi access for remotely monitoring and controlling the sap chilling system.

Wild, who is co-director of the Cornell Maple Program, is continuing use of the DIY units at the Uihlein Maple Forest in the 2026 maple season. The information bulletin and DIY guide are posted on nnyagdev.org (https://nnyagdev.org/index.php/mapleforest/maple/) and available from the Cornell Maple Program (https://blogs.cornell.edu/cornellmaple/).

Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Legislature through the New York State Assembly and administrated by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. Learn more at nnyagdev.org.

Photos: An an NNYADP proof-of-concept project, Uihlein Maple Research Forest Director Adam Wild built DIY food-grade glycol chilling systems for use with maple sap holding tanks large and small. Photos: Adam Wild

The following January events include updates on NNYADP-funded research. See the links with each listing for more information and registration details. Call ahead for weather updates.

 

January 9-10, 2026
New York State Maple Conference
SUNY Cobleskill
Saturday sessions include Northern NY Maple Specialist Adam Wild
Workshops, trade show, networking.
More info: www.nysjanuarymapleconference.com/

 

2026 Northern NY Tri-County Crop Congresses
January 28, 2026, 9:45AM-3:00PM, Canton Fire Dept.
January 29, 9:45AM-3:00 PM, Carthage Elks Lodge

NNYADP Value of Manure project update by Quirine M. Ketterings, Ph.D., Cornell Nutrient Management Spear Program among presentations on crop, nutrient, and crop pres management. Click on dates for speakers agenda, cost, registration.

August 26, 2025.  The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program has announced a call for 2026 research project proposals. The NNYADP was established by the New York State Legislature to grow the farm and foods economy across the state’s northernmost region of Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties. Application forms and guidelines are posted at nnyagdev.org under the About: Projects by Year tab. The deadline to apply is October 31, 2025.

The farmer-driven small grants program supports projects that help the diverse agricultural sectors of northern New York to adapt to changing market conditions and weather extremes, overcome emerging crop pests, and enhance farm sustainability and environmental stewardship. NNYADP project results have benefited farms statewide and nationally, and have provided foundational research data needed for larger funders to continue the research on a broader scale.

More than 80 members on the NNYADP Farmer Committee, representing the dairy, crops, local foods, maple and forest sectors, review and priority-rank research proposals for small grant awards. The results of recent NNYADP-funded projects are publicly accessible under the About: Projects by Year header on this website (nnyagdev.org).

Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Legislature through the New York State Assembly and administrated by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.