By Hank Russell
Governor Kathy Hochul recently awarded $3 million to 14 small businesses to support Long Island’s aquaculture industry through Round 2 of the Long Island Aquaculture Infrastructure Grant Program. Funding will help these producers make infrastructure upgrades, streamline operations and increase production.
The program, which has dedicated a total of $4.2 million to New York’s aquaculture industry through two rounds, is a part of the State’s Blue Food Transformation initiative, first announced in Governor Kathy Hochul’s 2024 State of the State. Today’s announcement comes on the heels of Governor Hochul’s request for a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretarial Disaster Designation for Suffolk County following the severe economic losses growers sustained this past winter as a result of severe ice conditions.
As previously reported in Long Island Life & Politics, Hochul requested a USDA Secretarial Disaster Designation for Suffolk County. Heavy snowfall and multi-week severe freeze conditions significantly impacted the county’s aquaculture grower operations in February 2026, with producers facing an estimated combined $2.4 million loss. A Disaster Designation would allow for affected farms to apply for USDA low-interest emergency loans.
A USDA disaster designation makes farm operators in primary counties and those contiguous counties eligible to be considered for emergency loans from the Farm Service Agency, provided eligibility requirements are met. Farmers in eligible counties have eight months from the date of the disaster declaration to apply for relief programs.
“New York State is home to a thriving, unique agriculture industry that doesn’t stop when you reach the shoreline,” Hochul said. “Long Island’s historic seafood industry is second to none, helping to strengthen local food supply chains, bolster our state’s economy, and upholding a legacy of excellence and dedication to the industry.”
New York State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball said, “Long Island’s abundant, historic aquaculture industry is one of the things that makes our agricultural landscape so rich, diverse and unique. We’re proud to do all that we can to preserve the region’s working waterfronts, and that starts with supporting the producers who work tirelessly to raise the delicious seafood the region is known for.
Ball said the funding “will help these businesses make significant investments in their operations so they can continue bringing the very best seafood New York State has to offer to tables across the state.”
The Long Island Aquaculture Infrastructure Grant Program is being administered for the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets by the Farm and Food Growth Fund. The Infrastructure Grants announced today fund infrastructure projects, including construction, renovation, or installation of buildings, docks, equipment, or permanent or temporary facilities to support aquaculture businesses operating on Long Island.
The list of awardees follows:
- WROC, LLC
- Hampton Oyster Company
- Davy Jones Landing
- Oysterponds Shellfish LLC
- Lucky 13 Oysters
- East Hampton Oyster Company
- Scrimshaw Enterprises LLC
- Hart Lobster, Co.
- Thatch Island
- Peconic Gold Oysters Inc.
- North Fork Big Oyster Corp
- Jeffrey M. Kraus
- Dune Fishery LLC
- Cornelius & Little Ram Oyster Company LLC.
Funding awarded through the first round of the program, which was dedicated to purchasing or upgrading equipment, was announced in October at a special event held by Ball and the Farm and Food Growth Fund at Hampton Oyster Company in New Suffolk. The first round awarded $1.2 million to 17 businesses on Long Island.
The mission of the Farm and Food Growth Fund is to create employment and safe affordable housing, capital access opportunities for low-and-moderate income individuals, families and communities with a focus on farm and food-related industries located in the Northeast Foodshed encompassing parts of the greater Hudson Valley, western Connecticut, western Massachusetts, southern Vermont, and eastern Pennsylvania by stimulating economic vitality through technical assistance services, community development and increasing the flow of capital.
“Bolstering the processing and distribution side of the Long Island aquaculture industry through the funding of infrastructure projects will further increase awareness of and market access for New York’s outstanding seafood,” said Todd M. Erling, president and CEO of Farm & Food Growth Fund. “In conjunction with the previous round funding equipment, the multi-faceted Blue Food Transformation initiative and the Governor’s recent request for disaster relief, this historically important segment of the state’s agribusiness sector will be getting the support that it deserves to protect and grow its fragile, but tenacious, economy.”
“Long Island’s aquaculture industry is one of the fastest-growing sectors of agriculture in the region,” said Long Island Farm Bureau Executive Director Bill Zalakar. “However, along with all the challenges that continue to affect our growers, the extreme weather this past winter took a serious toll on our aquaculture farmers.”
Zalakar said the funding from the Long Island Aquaculture Infrastructure Grant Program, along with the emergency disaster designation, “will provide critical assistance to help farmers restore their operations and enhance long-term resilience. These efforts will help our farmers get back on their feet and continue building a stronger, more sustainable aquaculture industry on Long Island.”