N.J.'s agriculture secretary leaving amid discord

For seven years, New Jersey's agriculture secretary helped farmers overcome major challenges - from nationwide scares over tainted spinach and tomatoes to damage from Asian longhorned beetles, hail, and droughts.

Charles Kuperus oversaw the preservation of tens of thousands of acres of farmland, implemented an agricultural smart-growth plan, and enthusiastically promoted Jersey produce, seafood and nursery products.

Then, last month, Kuperus tendered his resignation. He will leave at year's end, he said, because he no longer enjoys the confidence of the full eight-member board that chose him.

The Agriculture Department's near-death experience last spring - when Gov. Corzine sought to fold it into the Department of Environmental Protection - caused some members to wonder whether Kuperus had the temperament to sustain the agency's struggle for survival in tough, budget-cutting times.

"Without support, you can't lead," said Kuperus, 50, who has put 234,000 miles on his state car traveling to Trenton and farms across the New Jersey from his Sussex County home.

The board members "wanted to take a different path," he said. "That's their option."

Though the department remains, its direct state funding fell from $9.2 million in fiscal 2008 to $7.9 million in fiscal 2009. Future cuts - part of Corzine's effort to tackle a projected $1.2 billion budget shortfall this year - could hamper or threaten some inspection duties and whole programs, agriculture officials said.

Budget pressure, coupled with controversy over a law that limits the land-development rights of North Jersey farmers, became so intense that some board members demanded Kuperus resign, say state agriculture leaders.

They "expected me to be tougher with the legislature and governor," Kuperus said. It was a challenging situation, he said, because "I have to answer to the governor as a member of his cabinet, and I have a constituency to protect."

"This is a difficult time to be secretary," said Agriculture Board member Ann Dorsett, who owns a horse farm in Woolwich.

With demands for greater economy, "there were differences on how and where [budget] cuts would be made, and certainly none of the ideas make anyone happy," Dorsett said.

"All of the board members are extremely concerned that we're presiding over a funeral, and want very much to hang onto the structure" of the department as a freestanding agency, she said. "This board has inherited a whirlwind."

Budget cuts already have taken a toll, an Agriculture Department spokeswoman said. A program to provide farmers with free deer fencing has been lost. Gone, too, is the free equipment that used to be given to graduates of a Rutgers University beekeeping course. The state's seafood-development program has been jeopardized by the retirement of the official who headed it. With a hiring freeze, it is unclear whether she will be replaced.

Despite the problems, Kuperus points to strides in the state's agriculture industry. He helped oversee the preservation and purchase - through state, county and local funding - of 84,000 acres of farmland. He saw the needs of agriculture included in the growth plans of 37 municipalities. Farmers' markets expanded to 111 locations across the state.

One of the biggest successes during Kuperus' tenure was the state's branding effort, which has grown dramatically from its start 25 years ago with the Jersey Fresh vegetable and fruit program. A Jersey Grown brand for plants, shrubs, trees and cut flowers was launched in 2004, and a Jersey Seafood label began this year.

The secretary is credited for taking quick action when reports of tainted produce in other parts of the country threatened Jersey farmers. He appeared in the media and took out ads to encourage public confidence in the state's produce.

But some board members, including Vice President Robert Matarazzo, say the secretary should have been a more aggressive advocate for farmers.

Kuperus "could be in a crowd of 100 people asking questions and rattle off facts and figures that would boggle the mind," said Matarazzo, who has a winery and grows grapes, apples and pumpkins in Belvidere, Warren County.

"If he took those facts and figures, and related them to legislators, the governor, and the governor's staff on a regular basis, we wouldn't be in the predicament we're in," he said.

The agency's "back is against the wall," Matarazzo said. "We will not only lose employees, we will lose programs. The gypsy moth program is in jeopardy in the next budget. That's like feeding the trees to the gypsy moth."

If the department's financial problems aren't fixed, "we will be left in the Garden State without a Department of Agriculture, and that's like having a church without a priest," he said.

Resigning was "Charlie's choice. All we ever asked of him is that he fight harder: Go to the governor, go to the legislator. His response was that he sent a memo or a letter. But they have to see the anger, fear and stress in your eyes."

Other board members also were concerned about budget cuts, but they declined to speculate on why the secretary stepped down.

"There was no vote" asking him to go, said Scott Ellis of Yardville, Mercer County, who represents vegetable growers on the panel. "It seems he felt that he gave what he could give."

The agriculture board's relationship with Kuperus was further soured by the Highlands Preservation Act of 2004. The law led to the September adoption of a Highlands Regional Master Plan, which affects a huge swath across several North Jersey counties.

Environmentalists wanted the act to safeguard the water supply by limiting development on property, including farmland. Farmers believed the restriction posed an economic handicap.

Kuperus found himself between the governor, who pushed for the act, and farming interests. "We influenced the law to make sure it was beneficial to agriculture, while not compromising water quality," he said.

Though Kuperus had critics, he also had fans. Many farmers felt they were well represented by him.

"I'm sure he [did] the best he could during a turbulent time," said Eric Johnson, co-owner of Johnson's Corner Farm in Medford and a supporter of the secretary. "I guess he just had enough."

Last week, the secretary - whose last day in the job will be Dec. 31 - received a standing ovation at a convention of the New Jersey Farm Bureau in Princeton. The bureau is a nonprofit trade association with 13,000 members, including 7,000 farmers.

"The secretary of agriculture is on a seesaw, balancing administration policies with the agricultural community's policies," said Peter Furey, executive director of the bureau.

Kuperus "was no different than any preceding secretary in trying to strike a balance. He stood up to the administration, and stood up to the proposed cuts. Any suggestion that his resignation is the result of a passive stance is inaccurate," Furey said.

For his part, Kuperus - who has farmed for more than 20 years - plans to return to his family, especially his wife, who has been running their nursery and florist business in Sussex County.

"I look back with great pride on seven wonderful years of accomplishment," he said. "This chapter is closing, but a new one is opening. I'm content in whatever I'm doing."