New Jersey’s remaining grasslands are almost entirely embedded within agricultural landscapes.  An active and highly successful farmland preservation program in New Jersey has done little to help grassland wildlife that benefit only from certain types of farming practices.  In addition, the program has been unable to reverse the dramatic losses in farmland acreage and fragmentation of agricultural landscapes that New Jersey is experiencing due to development.  Farms in New Jersey primarily remain family-owned, in striking contrast to national trends of consolidation of farms under large agribusiness corporations. Small, family farms are at a competitive disadvantage with large farming conglomerates.  The fates of farming and grassland birds in New Jersey are inseparable.  If both are to survive here, the farming and conservation community must work together to develop innovative strategies to promote economically viable farm communities and conservation goals. Therefore NJAS applauds the mission of the Foodshed Alliance which “believes that the future of our health, our land, and our communities depends, to great extent, on the existence of local farms-that farmers are the keystone to our connection with our food, the land and our sense of place. It is this conviction that drives us to work, with farmers, consumers, and agricultural professionals to foster a self-sustaining "foodshed" that supports farmers, nourishes people, respects the land, and strengthens our communities.”  For more information about the Foodshed Alliance please visit their web site by clicking here.