U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins is continuing to advocate the cause of Andy Henry, the Cranbury, New Jersey farmer whose family farm – which has been in his family since 1850 – is poised to be seized by eminent domain in order to satisfy “affordable housing” mandates.
“Today I met with Andy Henry and a growing coalition of experts who have come together to save Henry Farm (USDA-Certified Prime Farmland!! ),” Rollins posted on X late Monday. “@USDA remains ready to work with @NJDA and @GovMurphy to find a resolution that preserves this small family farm. We are also ensuring that all legal tools at our disposal are ready to fight for Andy Henry, and any farmer whose land is being targeted across the country.”
Rollins previously wrote to the Township’s governing body to warn them that efforts to seize the Henry farm could jeopardize federal funding.
“USDA is currently investigating whether any portion of this project-including funding or planning support-has involved or will involve the use of federal funds, including but not limited to grants administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) through the State of New Jersey,” Rollins wrote. “If federal funding is implicated, then your township and any administering entity are required by statute and regulation to have completed and submitted Form AD-1006 (Farmland Conversion Impact Rating Form) to NRCS prior to any commitment of funds or advancement of the project. To date, no such form has been submitted to USDA by the Township or its partners.”
Affordable housing law in New Jersey is governed by the “Mount Laurel Doctrine,” the umbrella term for a series of state Supreme Court rulings. At present, New Jersey’s municipalities must collectively supply 146,000 affordable housing units by 2035. Cranbury’s Planning Board adopted its Fourth Round Fair Share Housing Plan in late June; the plan includes acquiring the farm by negotiation or, failing that, by initiating the eminent domain process. It’s a relatively low hurdle for the state to demonstrate a “public purpose,” and so-called affordable housing has been deemed a valid “public” purpose by the courts.
Rollins’s remote meeting with Andy Henry and his team came one day before she led a Trump Administration press gaggle announcing the ‘National Farm Security Action Plan’ intended to protect U.S. agriculture from Chinese efforts to acquire domestic American farm land.
Henry Farm Update:
Our position has been clear from the start: America’s farmland will be protected.
Today I met with Andy Henry and a growing coalition of experts who have come together to save Henry Farm (USDA-Certified Prime Farmland!! ). @USDA remains ready to work… pic.twitter.com/M7atpPVg92
— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) July 8, 2025
