This is the release of the second video in the Hopped Upstate series: Sustaining the Land. Casey and Kelly Holzworth are creating a sustainable farm that they one day hope to turn into a homestead. As part of their operation, they started a quarter acre hops yard. Almost a year since Governor Cuomo signed the Farm Brewery Act into law, a new market and demand for New York State grown hops has taken hold. Casey’s hops have already peaked the interest of area breweries and he’ll be looking to sell come fall.
Kelsey’s Quarter Acre Farm is located on land leased through Saratoga P-L-A-N’s land easement program. The goal for the farm is to put the land they need into agricultural production, while preserving the natural landscape and protecting the environment. Casey believes one idea behind the state’s legislation was to create this kind of opportunity for agricultural production and sustainability in local communities – and he’s excited to be a part of it.
Watch their story below and learn more about the project here.