New Jersey Farm Bureau Honors Women Leading Agriculture at Regional Conference

The New Jersey Farm Bureau Women's Committee hosted a luncheon celebrating female farmers at the Northeast Ag Expo in Atlantic City. Dr. Carrie Edsall from SUNY Cobleskill spoke to 400 attendees about keeping farm marketing strategies simple and building community connections.

ATLANTIC CITY — The New Jersey Farm Bureau Women’s Committee brought together approximately 400 regional farmers and agricultural professionals for a special luncheon honoring women in farming at this year’s Northeast Ag Expo. The timing was particularly meaningful, as the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization has designated 2026 as the International Year of the Woman Farmer.

Event organizer Darcy Perehinys explained the motivation behind the gathering, emphasizing the unique challenges facing agricultural leaders today.

“Leadership in agriculture doesn’t look like a corner office, it looks like boots by the door and a to-do list that never ends,” Perehinys said. “And sometimes plans completely fall apart before they’ve even been put into action. Let’s be honest, agriculture is hard. Some days it’s amazing and some days you question every decision that you ever made.”

“This event was created so we could all just eat lunch together, talk with each other and learn about each other’s operations,” she said.

The program featured remarks from New Jersey Dairy Princess Dakota Meys, who is also Perehinys’ daughter. Meys highlighted the critical role of mentorship in attracting the next generation to farming.

“From dairy farms to produce fields, from equine operations to specialty crops, agriculture has shaped our state for generations now, and as we look to the future one thing is clear: the success of New Jersey agriculture depends on mentorship, generational learning and a willingness to open our hearts and our farms,” she said.

“Mentorship is one of the most powerful tools we have in agriculture, the lessons passed down from generation to generation go far beyond how to plant a crop or how to care for livestock, it teaches responsibility, perseverance and respect for the land.”

“Learning from the generations before us allows us to honor the sacrifices they made to keep agriculture alive in a small-but-mighty agricultural state like New Jersey. While technology continues to evolve, the values that define agriculture remain the same, by combining traditional knowledge with new ideas and innovation, we can continue our agricultural heritage while building a stronger future.”

The featured speaker was Dr. Carrie Edsall, an animal science professor at State University of New York, Cobleskill, who operates Black Willow Pond Farm where she raises chickens, pigs and sheep near the college campus.

Edsall focused her presentation on the importance of straightforward marketing approaches for farm operations.

“We all know we can grow great things, but what happens if you can’t market them?” She asked. “That’s where I really stepped up trying to find farmers’ markets, trying to make connections with restaurants and get stuff to New York City. After all there’s 8 million people just south of us. I made all those connections and I was doing a lot of that.”

The professor shared how she balanced family life with business networking, often bringing her young sons to evening meetings while building relationships with neighbors and potential customers. She cited her farm’s annual hog roast and pig roast as examples of strengthening community ties.

“Technology and resources are out there and I urge you to grab them where you can, and when and where you can,” she said, explaining her decision to prioritize networking with local businesses, fellow farmers and neighbors, including joining the New York State Certified Organic Association.

Throughout her talk, Edsall repeatedly stressed the value of uncomplicated goal-setting, particularly given the demanding nature of livestock and dairy operations that require constant attention.

“Keep your farm goals simple. What are your [monetary] targets for each new thing you’re introducing? When I started, it was, ‘I want to make $10,000 from those broiler chickens’ or ‘Can I make $10,000 off of these rabbits?’ It was simple and for some reason $10,000 was what I wanted each entity to be able to raise so that I would gross $50,000 and that number was a salary to me. I just set simple targets for that.”