To the Editor:
Many New Jerseyans, myself included, take pride in calling this the Garden State, a nickname that reflects our rich agricultural history of fruit and vegetable production. Each year, we eagerly await the spring and summer months when local farm stands reopen, their shelves overflowing with vibrant produce from across the state. There’s nothing quite like that first bite of a Jersey tomato on a hoagie at the Shore, a reminder of what makes our state so special.
Yet, these cherished moments, and the agricultural systems that make them possible, are under threat. Cuts to research funding across key federal agencies like the USDA, NSF and NIH threaten the future of agriculture in New Jersey and beyond.
Consider one of New Jersey’s most iconic “Jersey Fresh” crops: the blueberry. In 2024 alone, New Jersey produced more than $84 million worth of blueberries on more than 10,000 acres. This success wasn’t accidental, it stemmed from decades of sustained public investment in breeding, pest and disease management, and post-harvest technologies.
That legacy began in 1910 in Whitesbog, where local cranberry grower Elizabeth White partnered with USDA botanist Frederick Coville to collect seeds from thriving wild bushes in the Pine Barrens, marking the beginning of blueberry domestication and the USDA blueberry breeding program.
Since that historic collaboration, federally funded initiatives, such as the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture Hatch program and Specialty Crop Block Grants, have continued to support the blueberry industry. These programs have enabled research into breeding consumer-preferred, machine-harvestable blueberry cultivars; created integrated pest and pollinator management strategies for blueberry pests; and funded outreach efforts to promote awareness and purchase of locally grown blueberries, helping keep New Jersey’s and the nation’s blueberry industry productive for more than a century.
Blueberries are just one example. The entire U.S. agricultural system depends on sustained investment in both basic and applied research. The federal government is the largest contributor to this effort, providing $3.24 billion, 64% of all public agricultural research and development funding. These investments not only support key domestic commodities but also drive technological innovation, expand scientific knowledge and train the next generation of scientists. They are essential to maintaining our global competitiveness in agricultural trade and ensuring our nation’s food security.
Without continued support, we risk undermining both agriculture and scientific progress. The 2026 USDA budget summary, released May 30, reveals a $7 billion reduction compared to the previous year. Alarmingly, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s budget has been slashed by 37.5%, jeopardizing critical research and innovation nationwide.
As a Ph.D. student in plant pathology at Cornell, a proud New Jersey native raised in Cape May, and a Rutgers graduate, I see firsthand how federal funding cuts threaten not just New Jersey agriculture, but farming systems across the U.S. For instance, the Cornell AgriTech Summer Scholar program, which paired graduate mentors with undergraduates for their first research experience, was canceled this year due to budget uncertainty.
These constraints are also hurting graduate education more broadly. Concerns over funding have halted recruitment of new graduate students in my department and across the university, pausing the training pipeline for future scientists. I’ve watched respected researchers lose decades-long programs and jobs with a single email.
The consequences of these funding cuts extend far beyond a single crop, state, researcher, farmer or field; they threaten the resilience, sustainability and innovation of agriculture across the entire country. I urge you to contact your representatives and stand up for New Jersey and for the future of American agriculture
Don’t let the Garden State’s garden die.
Hana Feulner, Cape May
