WTEN Albany: Proposed bill aims to limit big dairy farms in NY

May 30th, 2025

by: Jamie DeLine – May 30, 2025

Watch the full piece on WTEN here.

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Brooklyn Senator Jabari Brisport has legislation that would stop the Department of Environmental Conservation from giving any permits for new or expanding large concentrated animal feeding operations, known as CAFOs.

Those are farms at that have 700 dairy cows or more.  He said there are two reasons why this bill is needed. 

“These are industrial players that shook out smaller family farms over the past two decades we’ve seen about two thirds of smaller dairy farms in New York State shutter the expense of local economies and sending wealth into  these larger industrial players,” said Brisport.

He said the second reason is over environmental concerns. 

“The manure is not treated well. It often seeps into local waterways, causing harmful algal blooms, some of which are destroying the finger lakes. In New York State, and they just damaged the drinking water of local communities.”

In a statement, The New York Farm Bureau said, “Our CAFO farmers are held to a high standard to ensure safety, sustainability and reduce impact on water and air quality.”

The bureau opposes the legislation, as does Upstate United. They worry about the economic impact it can have on the state. 

“The average dairy farm in update New York is about 1,200 cows, so that’s just about right to produce the most amount of milk at the least amount of cost,” said Justin Wilcox, Executive Director of Upstate United.

Companies such as Chobani are expanding their operations in Upstate New York. It was recently announced that the yogurt company expects to add 1,000 new jobs with its new processing plant in the Mohawk Valley.