NYS tariff relief grants to help Long Island farmers facing higher costs

Paumanok Vineyards in Aquebogue has been paying more for bottles, screw caps and the other supplies it needs to make wine because of U.S. tariffs on imported goods and other factors.

Winemaker Kareem C. Massoud said he’s looking to buy new tractors and expects the price to be higher because imported steel, aluminum and other metals are often used to make them.

The global supply chain hasn’t recovered from the pandemic, Massoud said, adding President Donald Trump’s 18-month-old tariffs policy has increased uncertainty about prices.

This week, New York State rolled out a grant program aimed at providing tariff relief to some of the state's 30,650 farms, including wine and aquaculture businesses, which make up a significant portion of Long Island's agricultural sector. 

The aid comes as local farmers contend with increased operating costs due to tariffs and the war with Iran. The latter has led to spikes in the price of fertilizers and fuel oil. 

"Our costs have risen dramatically this decade, so any kind of assistance would be appreciated," Massoud told Newsday upon hearing about the tariff relief grants.

The $30 million Agricultural Resiliency Against Tariffs Program is for specialty crop producers — including wineries — and aquaculture, dairy and livestock farms across the state. The grants range from $1,000 to $25,000, and the application deadline is Aug. 11.

The Long Island Farm Bureau, a trade group based in Calverton, endorsed the tariff relief program when it was unveiled by Gov. Kathy Hochul in January as part of her proposed 2026-27 state budget. Lawmakers agreed, including the $30 million in funding in the final $268 billion spending plan.

Bill Zalakar, the bureau's executive director, said this week that the rising cost of fertilizers is a major concern for local farmers. 

“Everybody's using fertilizers in one way or the other, and that has had the biggest impact with the tariffs," he said.

Some farms in the state have seen the cost of fertilizers rise up to $20,000 per year, according to Hochul. And for a time, the prices of some brands had increased by as much as 51%, based on data.

Besides fertilizers, Long Island farmers are paying more for imported equipment, cardboard boxes, burlap bags and supplies made of plastic, glass or metals, according to the farm bureau.

More than 600 farms on LI

The region is home to 607 farms, including 85 wineries.

Most are in Suffolk County, and their total sales — $364.2 million in 2022 — placed Suffolk No. 4 among the state's 62 counties, according to a 2024 report by state Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

New York appears to be the first state to offer tariff relief to farms.

Hochul said the grants are meant to compensate for more than a year of higher prices for agricultural equipment and supplies due to tariffs — and more recently the Iran war. The payments “will provide much-needed relief to New York’s farmers who feed our communities,” she said Monday in announcing the opening of the window for grant applications.

Trump, in announcing his "Liberation Day" tariffs in April 2025, said they would promote U.S. manufacturing, add billions of dollars to the federal treasury, reduce the trade deficit and stop foreign nations from taking unfair advantage of the United States.

In February, some of Trump’s tariffs were struck down as illegal by the U.S. Supreme Court, but he quickly imposed new ones using a 1974 federal law.

Limited impact of federal relief

New York’s relief program follows a December announcement by Trump that $12 billion in federal “one-time bridge payments” would go to farms that have been negatively impacted by “temporary market disruptions and increased production costs,” which he blamed on then President Joe Biden’s administration.

The federal payments were to be made by Feb. 26 and go to growers of corn, cotton, oats, peanuts, wheat, rice and other crops, based on a U.S. Department of Agriculture announcement.

Hochul said the federal aid program “is fundamentally flawed for New York since it leaves specialty crops and the dairy sector with no meaningful support.”

To be eligible for state relief, farms must have at least two-thirds of their federal gross income in excess of $30,000 derived from agricultural activity, grow eligible crops in the state and provide eligibility and production data that’s certified by a financial professional.

The application and an educational webinar may be found at https://agriculture.ny.gov/agricultural-resiliency-against-tariffs-program.

Austin Weaver, an executive in upstate Watertown for lender Farm Credit East, said the state program would be a boost to the struggling agricultural sector.

“These funds will help offset financial losses in an industry that has been impacted by federal tariff policies,” he said last month after the state budget was adopted.

By James T. Madore

james.madore@newsday.comJamesTMadore

James T. Madore writes about Long Island business news including the economy, development, and the relationship between government and business. He previously served as Albany bureau chief.