OPINION: From Farm to Table, via the Bronx

From The New York Times. 

The huge Hunts Point produce market that stretches across more than 100 acres in the Bronx is the largest such food exchange in the world. The stalls that are loaded with fruits and vegetables from around the globe have sales of more than $2.4 billion a year. But only a small fraction of that produce comes from New York and New Jersey, which makes no sense when many local midsize and small farms are struggling to stay in business and consumers want fresh, local food.

Historically, it has been difficult for local farmers to pay the fees or follow the arcane rules of consignment necessary to sell in the Hunts Point market. The solution is for Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio to work together to build a regional wholesale farmers’ market on underused property in the Hunts Point complex.

Both the mayor and the governor have endorsed the idea, but there has been little progress. Mr. Cuomo established a task force and asked it to come up with a plan in 90 days. That was a year ago.

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