As an adult agriculture educator for the Saratoga County branch of the Cornell Cooperative Extension, she spends a good deal of her working hours, well…teaching. Like most of the local extension agents, a primary aspect of her job concerns keeping farmers informed.

“We’ll help them (understand the) rules and regulations and update them,” Foti told a reporter in a recent telephone interview. “In New York State, regulations on food and produce, labeling, and things like that change, so we’re keeping them up to date on what those are.”

CCE agents in her capacity are liaisons between the state and the farmer, only disseminating information or making recommendations backed by science and research. That information comes either directly from Cornell, or from other accredited institutions such as Penn State or the University of Massachusetts.

“Our role is to take (that) information and relay it to the public in terms that they can understand,” Foti said. The agents “break it down so (business people) can apply that science” to their professions, she added.

Like many of her “ag” peers, Foti spends a considerable amount of time assisting and educating local small farmers. A “small farm,” according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, consists of a plot of 300 acres or fewer. The 2022 Census of Agriculture in New York determined that 94 percent of farms in Saratoga County are family owned.

In addition to “ag educators,” of which there are 10 in the Saratoga County office, the extension works with regional specialists (who work across several counties) in the fields of agriculture business management, area livestock, field crop, and dairy management.

The agents “have a very good working relationship; some of them are in constant communication and contact (with farmers) on a weekly or daily basis,” Foti said. “It really depends on what that agent is working on with that farmer and what they’re trying to accomplish.”

Foti, 29, who was born and raised in Galway and still lives there, provided an example.

“Let’s say a dairy farmer is looking to better improve his feed quality,” Foti explained. “There are feed specialists that we have access to, and they can come out and work with the farmer and help evaluate the feed that he’s giving his cows, look at it, (and) help them come up with a better ration. Usually, these people work in partnership with not only the farm owner, but with the team of people there that keep the farm running. It’s very much a team effort.”

The Ballston Spa-based Cornell Cooperative Extension provides certifications that allow farmers to sell in certain markets, such as that for GAP (good agricultural practices), and conducts numerous and varied classes and workshops.

“We will talk to farmers about different practices in different sectors of agriculture. Whether it’s dairy farming, vegetable growing, tree farming, practices that enrich the soil health,” said Foti, who earned a bachelor’s degree in agriculture and sustainability, as well as a master’s in adult education and equine education and training from the State University of New York, Empire College.

Other times, the extension will conduct unplanned workshops to deal with a pressing issue, such as bird flu or crop blight. Extension agents also provide assistance to farmers on marketing issues. Though some local farmers focus on selling their produce straight to market (for example, to large distributors), others do so directly to consumers.

The latter method, Foti said, “allows farmers to have direct relations with their customers, and we found that it gives the customers a lot of confidence in the products they buy, and a lot of faith in the product because they’re seeing the face of the person that is producing their food.”

But, she noted a concerning trend in the way some people use social media—such as Facebook,  TikTok, or Instagram—or even newsletters to tout their agricultural products.

“In my five years here, the way that we help farmers market (their produce) has changed,” she said. “We now have a culture of influencers. (Certain) farmers are becoming the mouthpieces of our industry. We try to remind them that that’s something we have to take very seriously.”

“When we have our marketing workshops, we don’t belittle anybody else’s sector of the ag industry. As long as you’re buying from farmers, and you’re buying ag, or you’re eating beef—we want you to do that. We teach farmers, ‘You don’t down anybody else and what they do.’ We don’t want to down what you’re doing. Having this diversity and a large selection to choose from—it makes the world go round.” 

The CCE workshops bring out the teacher in Foti.

“We’re finding that (they are) also becoming a really great avenue for us in the ag industry to express and teach and educate and advocate for what we do because there’s a huge disconnect,” she said. “People think that we care for animals a certain way, or we plant things a certain way, or we spray things a certain way, but it’s not all true. We’re able to kind of clear the dust.”

Like all agents at the Cornell Cooperative Extension, Foti is working to help the ag industry as a whole, as well as individual farmers, succeed.

“I get to help them cultivate their dreams,” Foti said. “Everybody’s farm is their little piece of planned paradise. We help them develop that, and it’s a really cool thing.”

For more information, contact the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Saratoga County by phone at 518-885-8995 or by email at ccesaratoga.org/contact.