Meet John, our Team's Summer Field Technician
Hi, I'm John Pirrung, the new summer field technician for the SWNYDLFC team. I just graduated from Cornell University's College of Agriculture & Life Sciences with a bachelor's degree in environmental science and am most experienced in agriculture, especially with weeds, pests, and soil quality. In addition to working in this area, I'm planning to learn more about dairy production and livestock in my time with the team, so you'll be seeing me around.
This summer I'll be working on a number of different research projects. For many of these projects I'll be working as a scout, surveying fields for insect damage, weeds, and diseases. I'll also be collecting and analyzing all sorts of samples, collecting data on things like crop yields, pest counts, and pesticide efficacy. Quite a bit of this summer will be spent on the road, so while I'm based out of Southern Erie County, I'll be working on farms in all five of the counties that the team covers.
In addition to my hands-on work collecting data for the research projects, I'll also be helping the team with outreach programming. Whether that's just by contributing to the newsletter (like this article) or by helping to organize workshops, I'll be making sure that our educational outreach content makes sense, looks good, and reaches a wide audience. Looking forward to meeting you!
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Crops, Cows & Critters - Southwest New York Dairy, Livestock & Field Crops Newsletter Sponsorship
December 19, 2025
Our two forms of publications feature research-based and timely information from our four specialists, listed to the right, along with local event notifications and Cornell University outreach. This information is provided to participants who range from dairy, livestock, and field crops producers to agricultural suppliers and consultants.
Weekly Email Update: Shared with 625+ households who have signed up with our program.
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If you sponsor our weekly and monthly publications you reach approximately 955 households.
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2025 Cornell Food Beverage & Animal Feed Manufacturer Survey
December 19, 2025
Industry and Educational Advocates for New York State's Food, Beverage, and Animal Feed Manufacturing industries:
As you know, NYS has a diverse food and beverage manufacturing industry, in both the types of industries that exist and the wide distribution of firms by scale. Many manufacturing firms have strong backward linkages to agricultural production sectors in the state that support both farm-level and downstream food industry firms and consumers. In collaboration with the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, a team from Cornell University's Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management has recently rolled out the 2025 New York State Food, Beverage, and Animal Feed Manufacturer Survey. The industry will benefit from an updated assessment of the industry that informs private and public investments and opportunities to support firm growth and improved profitability.
Cornell Organic Field Crops & Dairy Conference
March 6, 2026
Waterloo, NY
Farmers, researchers, educators, and agricultural service providers from across the Northeast are invited to the 2026 Cornell Organic Field Crops & Dairy Conference, held Friday, March 6, 2026, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Lux Hotel & Conference Center in Waterloo, N.Y.
Co-hosted by New York Soil Health and Cornell CALS, the annual conference brings together leaders in organic grain, dairy, and livestock systems to share practical tools, new research, and farmer-tested strategies to support resilient and profitable organic production.
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