Moo-ving to organically maintained parks in New York City

Stonyfield Organic is proud to announce that its StonyFIELDS program, which started with a small park in South Portland, Maine, is continuing its expansion in the largest city in the country: New York City. In collaboration with Beyond Pesticides, Osborne Organics, NYC Parks and Rec, Grassroots Environmental Education, The Black Institute, Children’s Environmental Health Center at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Voters for Animal Rights, Stonyfield Organic is helping transition eight New York City parks across all five boroughs to organic grounds maintenance. The process, which began in the fall of 2022, will be completed in the fall of 2025.

82% of greater NYC area survey respondents said they’d be likely to visit a public park more often if they knew it was free of harmful pesticides. 77% of those respondents wish all public parks were free of pesticides.*

This initiative allows Stonyfield and its collaborators to help protect children’s health and ecosystem biodiversity. It also helps mitigate the climates crises, as eliminating fossil fuel–based nitrogen fertilizers and chemicals has a direct impact on avoiding carbon emissions. To assist in this, Stonyfield has paid $60,000 to a non-profit Beyond Pesticides, to underwrite the work specifically happening in New York City.

According to a recent survey of residents in the greater NYC area, 57% of parents have been worried about the dangers of their children playing in public parks due to the possibility of them being sprayed with pesticides. And this extends to pet parents, as 61% of those with a pet have the same concern.*

* All survey statistics were provided by Material Holdings, LLC from an April 2023 sampling of 506 people, ages 18+ residing in the greater New York City area.