§ 261. Powers and duties of department. The department shall:

1. perform necessary activities to encourage the development and improvement of farmers' markets throughout New York state;

2. provide technical assistance to any public or private agency for the planning, financing or development of a farmers' market, which market may include facilities for first-instance processing, shipping, storage, and direct sales of farm and food products on a retail or wholesale basis;

3. provide grants, from amounts appropriated, for state assistance to farmers' markets, as provided under section two hundred sixty-two of this article;

4. collect, compile and publish economic information on farmers' markets in the state;

5. establish working relationships with interested individuals and organizations and cooperative extensions for the purposes of this article; and

6. compile listings of available funding resources for the development and/or improvement of farmers' markets within the state. The department shall periodically advise municipal corporations, regional market authorities, public benefit corporations, not-for-profit corporations and agricultural cooperatives organized pursuant to the cooperative corporations law as to the availability of such information and shall provide such listings upon request.