NEW JERSEY EQUINE ECONOMIC IMPACT STUDY

HONORED BY NORTHEAST COOPERATIVE EXTENSION DIRECTORS

 

 

            BETHESDA, MD (July 14, 2008) - Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station/Rutgers Cooperative Extension 2007 New Jersey Equine Economic Impact Study Program has been honored as one of three recipients of the 2007 Award of Excellence from the Northeast Cooperative Extension Directors. This is the highest award presented by the Directors of Extension in the northeast. It recognizes Extension outreach programming that has achieved outstanding accomplishments, results, and impacts in addressing contemporary issues. Paul Gottlieb, Associate Professor, Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource and Diana Orban Brown, Director of Communications, Equine Science Center, NJAES, accepted the award at the Northeast Summer Joint Session of Cooperative Extension Directors, Experiment Station Directors and Council for Agricultural Research, Extension and Teaching (CARET) members on July 14, 2008. Twelve programs were nominated in the northeast region which includes states from Maine to West Virginia, including The District of Columbia.

 

            In addition to Gottlieb and Orban Brown, team members on the 2007 New Jersey Equine Economic Impact Study Program were Karyn Malinowski, Director of the Equine Science Center, team leader; Brian Schilling, Associate Director - Food Policy Institute; Kevin Sullivan, Institutional Research Specialist - New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station (NJAES); Lori Casciano, Designer - Office of Communications, NJAES; and Troy Joshua, National Agricultural Statistics Service - USDA.

 

            The 2007 New Jersey Equine Economic Impact Study exemplifies the power of teamwork in leading and accomplishing a mission critical to an important New Jersey industry and answering the needs of stakeholders, while at the same time leveraging funds, demonstrating ingenuity and entrepreneurial initiative, and engaging a significant segment of the populace in a common goal. The accomplishments of this program brought enormous positive attention to Rutgers, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences and the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station. The research study was designed to provide a comprehensive picture of the impact of the horse industry on the economy of New Jersey, on traditional agriculture, and on the preservation of working agricultural land and open space. In addition, it incorporated an Extension focus that ensures the final report and accompanying DVD continues to be circulated among policy makers and opinion leaders throughout the state.

 

Study results documented that the total economic impact of the equine industry was $1.1 billion annually. The industry employs nearly 13,000 and generates an estimated $160 million annually in federal, state and local taxes. There are 42,500 equine animals housed in New Jersey. The equine-related acres represent about one-fifth of the state's 790,000 acres in agriculture.