Merrymeeting Food Council Winter Update

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Network Building & Food System Support

Farm Labor Roundtable attendees gathered to discuss challenges and opportunities.Photo Credit: Merrymeeting Food Council

Farm Labor Roundtable attendees gathered to discuss challenges and opportunities.

Photo Credit: Merrymeeting Food Council

To fulfill our aim of bringing partners and community together to discuss pressing issues facing the food system in our region, MFC plans to host a few community conversations each year.

In mid-December, after a truly collaborative planning process, MFC helped convene more than 50 people to engage in a solutions oriented discussion about the labor challenges faced by many farms in our region and statewide. The evening was facilitated by Nikkilee Cataldo of Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust (and a founding member of MFC) and was held at the Bowdoinham Town Hall. Brief presentations were followed by breakout sessions for longer discussions led by farmers and service providers. The first half of the evening focused on existing labor pools; farmers and service providers shared their experiences working with specific labor pools. Cathy Karonis from Fairwinds Farm in Topsham and Bowdoinham shared insights about employing high school students, Muhidin Libah from the Somali Bantu Community Association of Lewiston Auburn discussed working with New Mainers, Ian Jerolmack of Stonecipher Farm in Bowdoinham shared his experience hiring H-2A visa workers, and Jan Goranson from Goranson Farm in Dresden talked about how they have structured and organized their workforce. Darcy Brockman from Maine Department of Labor’s Vocational Rehab Program and Leilani Carlson from the University of Maine Cooperative Extension’s AgrAbility Program spoke about opportunities for working with individuals with disabilities. Randy Thomas, the Farm Manager at Buldoc Correctional Facility in Warren, spoke about opportunities to hire workers through Work Release Programs. The second half of the evening again included short presentations followed by breakout discussions which were focused on three topics. A discussion about organizing labor and worker cooperatives was led by Katherine Bessey from the Cooperative Development Institute. Discussion of the needs and opportunities related to farm worker career development and training was led by Richard Brzozowski, Food System Program Administrator at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. Jason Lilley, a Sustainable Agriculture Professional with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension shared resources and insights about effective labor management on farms.

Next steps, event notes, and a resource document created during the planning process, will be available on our website soon and emailed directly to attendees. If you were unable to attend the event, but would like to receive these materials directly, please contact us. Read more about this event in coverage from the Lancaster Farmer.

Farmers! Please complete this survey from Cooperative Development Institute about Farm Labor.

Kennebec Estuary Land Trust’s LOCAL Garden. Photo credit: KELT

Kennebec Estuary Land Trust’s LOCAL Garden. Photo credit: KELT

MFC’s next roundtable will be focused on Community Gardens (details coming soon). Contact us if you are interested in helping plan this conversation or can share resources other gardens might find useful!

If you have a topic you would like to see as the focus of a future community conversation, please reach out!

As a member of the Maine Network of Community Food Councils Lead Team, MFC has contributed to recent statewide food system funding proposals and is looking forward to sharing more details soon about a multi-stakeholder statewide food system summit being planned for Fall 2020 with support from the Quimby Family Foundation. This project is being led by five organizations: Maine Climate Action NOW!; Maine Farm to Institution Network; Maine Food Strategy; the Maine Gleaning Network; and the Maine Network of Community Food Councils. The statewide summit and several pre-summit gatherings will begin to knit together the broad network of food system organizations and networks that exist in Maine with the aim of increasing our collective impact, building capacity, and reducing duplication. We look forward to sharing more on this soon!

Food Access & Health

As part of MFC’s work to increase access to healthy local produce for all in our region, MFC created Community Nutrition Resource Guides for all 14 of our communities. They are available for free on our website and we are counting on our network to help spread the word about these guides. They will be updated regularly so please check back for the latest versions and let us know if you see any updates needed or missing information. Print these out for your school, farmers’ market, town office, or…! If you aren’t sure if your community is within MFC’s service area, check out the service area map at the bottom of our homepage.

MFC’s Merrymeeting Gleaners had another record year in 2019. Review 2019 by the numbers, read about our bone broth pilot, and read other updates from the Merrymeeting Gleaners here!

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Chefs George and Mark (above) and organizers taking a moment to welcome and thank everyone (below).Photo credit: Jo Werther

Chefs George and Mark (above) and organizers taking a moment to welcome and thank everyone (below).

Photo credit: Jo Werther

Community Meals! One outcome of our community food access work over the past year and a half was the recognition that there are communities in our region interested in starting or revitalizing existing community meals. These are a simple way of building community and building access to healthy foods for all residents whether the barrier is transportation, time, finances, or something else.

MFC helped a group of volunteers launch a successful monthly community brunch in Bowdoinham this fall. Each of the four brunches has been attended by 65 or more people, of all ages. Residents are thrilled to have these opportunities to gather around good food during these cold months to see friends, old and new. Farmers and community members have generously donated ingredients and baked goods, and volunteers have planned and prepared delicious family style meals each month. The fourth Sunday brunch was held in early January with almost 100 attending! Through donations, $425 was raised during the January brunch for the Bowdoinham Food Pantry which, like other pantries in the region, has seen a significant increase in use during the past year.

Interested? MFC can help convene residents of other communities who are looking to start or revive a community meal program. We can share ideas from Harpswell Aging at Home’s Lunch with Friends model and our experience in Bowdoinham for inspiration.

We look forward to continuing to find ways to help people come together around food, build community, and support our food system in 2020!

Catch up on more news from MFC’s Merrymeeting Gleaners, MFC Partner Updates and Statewide Food System News!

Let us know how you would like to see our local and statewide food system grow. Are there connections you would like to make with other sectors of the food system? Email us with ideas.

Hope you are enjoying these additional minutes of daylight and planning for Spring! CSA sign-ups are opening and farms are beginning to hire for seasonal positions…Spring must be coming!

Winter Food System News

- FOOD POLICY NETWORK

  • Learn more about the 2019 accomplishments of Food Policy Councils around the country from Johns Hopkins Center for a Liveable Future, see the Food Policy Network info here.

- FOOD ACCESS & HEALTH:

  • Some interesting ideas on food security work can be found in issues of Food Bank News.

- FARMS & FOOD PRODUCERS:

  • The Maine Food Atlas is ready and waiting for your business information to be entered. Please include an affiliation with Merrymeeting Food Council if you are in our service area.

  • Read about Maine Farmland Trust’s Year in Review here.

  • Nearly $1M in USDA funding comes to support local and regional markets for Maine food.

  • Fork Food Lab is seeking to expand and help more new Maine food businesses start and grow. Learn more about Fork Food Lab through this video.

- FOOD RETAIL:

  • Registration is open for the 7th National Rural Grocery Summit, held in Manhattan, KS, on June 8-9, 2020. 

- POLICY:

  • Governor Mills’ Maine Economic Development Strategy: 2020-2029.

  • Read about Representative Pingree’s Keep America's Waterfronts Working Act here and learn more through support for the bill from Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association.

  • Food system laws passed by the 129th Legislature in Maine:

    • LD 167: An Act To Prevent Food Shaming in Maine’s Public Schools

    • LD 289: An Act To Prohibit the Use of Certain Disposable Food Service Containers

    • LD 292: An Act To Feed Maine's Residents by Allowing Dairy Dealers and Producers in the State To Donate Fresh Milk to Food Banks in the State

    • LD 454: An Act To Encourage the Purchase of Local Produce for Public Schools.

    • LD 497: An Act Regarding the Providing of Human Food Waste to Swine Producers.

    • LD 541: Resolve, To Reduce Food Waste in Schools.

    • LD 577: An Act To Increase Access to Nutritious Foods in Schools by Implementing an After-school Food Program for At-risk Students

    • LD 786: An Act To Reduce Hunger and Promote Maine Agriculture.

    • LD 982: Resolve, To Expand the Use of the Women, Infants and Children Special Supplemental Food Program at Farmers' Markets

    • LD 1159: Resolve, To End Hunger in Maine by 2030.

    • LD 1586: An Act To Promote Major Food Processing and Manufacturing Facility Expansion and To Create Jobs in Maine

    • LD 1679: An Act To Promote Clean Energy Jobs and To Establish the Maine Climate Council.

  • Pending Maine food system bills:

    • LD 400: An Act To Authorize a General Fund Bond Issue for Food Processing Infrastructure in Targeted Areas of the State.

    • LD 474: Resolve, To Establish a Medically Tailored Food Pilot Project

    • LD 795: RESOLUTION, Proposing an Amendment to the Constitution of Maine To Establish a Right to Food

    • LD 1167: An Act To Increase Consumption of Maine Foods in State Institutions.

    • LD 1531: An Act To Establish the Maine Food System Investment Program To Create Quality Jobs and Support Farms, Fisheries and Food-related Businesses.

  • Pending national legislation:

- STATEWIDE PLANNING & ASSESSMENT:

- FUNDING:

  • Lincoln County Community Block Development Grants - Application period is open, letters of intent due between 1/17 and 5/1 depending on focal area. See website for details.

- CONNECT:

  • Let us know how you would like to see our local and statewide food system grow? Are there connections you would like to make with other sectors of the food system? Email us with ideas.

Merrymeeting Gleaners Winter Updates

All of the numbers are in for 2019 gleaning. It was a very successful year! Here are the stats:

50,880 pounds donated

31 farms and food producers

35 recipient organizations

6 sharing tables

126 volunteers

15 towns served

All of these numbers are up from last year. Whether you were growing the produce, gleaning, delivering, processing, helping with administrative tasks, representing us at events or cheering us on and helping to spread the word - THANK YOU! 

Since we began in 2016, we have distributed 136,692 lbs of fresh produce! Thank you to our incredible farm partners for your generosity.

We can't wait to see what 2020 brings!

Projects:

  • Know Your Veggies: Developed by Merrymeeting Gleaners and SNAP-ED, this booklet is a tool to help people receiving gleaned produce to know how to identify it, store it, cook it, etc. The booklet has been distributed to the organizations that receive the produce. It is also available for free to download on our website. Plans for printing and distribution are in the works.

  • Sharing Tables: The Sharing Tables are unmanned tables of freshly gleaned produce set out in a public space like a library or town office. The produce is available for anyone that needs it, with no income restrictions. Sharing Tables ended in the late Fall, but will resume again during the 2020 growing season in: Arrowsic, Bath, Brunswick, Bowdoin, Harpswell, and Topsham.

  • Gleaning: In 2019 Merrymeeting Gleaners continued their work of increasing access to healthy local food and reducing on-farm food waste. They accomplished this by gleaning produce from over 2 dozen farms in the fields and at farmers markets. The gleaners donated 50,880 pounds to 35 organizations. In July of 2019 the gleaners reached a milestone of donating 100,000 pounds since their inception in 2016.

  • Processing: This year the gleaners were fortunate to receive a donated chest freezer, which is being stored at Maritime Apartments in Bath. This allowed the gleaners to experiment with food processing and storage. In October, Master Food Preservers from UMaine Cooperative Extension and gleaners blanched and froze about 300 pounds of carrots. The carrots are stored in the chest freezer and will be distributed throughout the winter when there is not as much fresh produce. The gleaners hope to do more of this type of processing as a way to stretch the fall harvest and supplement the winter distribution.

  • In addition to freezing produce, the gleaners also piloted a bone broth project. Apple Creek Farm donated lamb and goat bones which the gleaners had processed into two types of bone broth at Turtle Rock Farm. The bone broth was donated to People Plus and Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program. Feedback from both organizations is being collected to guide future processing efforts.

Gleaning at Six River Farm

Gleaning at Six River Farm

Know Your Veggies!

Know Your Veggies!

Sharing Table outside the Harpswell Town Office

Sharing Table outside the Harpswell Town Office

Processing Carrots at MCHPP

Processing Carrots at MCHPP

First Bone Broth!

First Bone Broth!

Connections/Outreach:

  • The Merrymeeting Gleaners share all materials and documents created and findings from our work with statewide partners through the Maine Gleaning Network as well as at statewide food system gatherings and conferences.

Action Items:

  • Organizations interested in receiving gleaned produce and farms interested in donating produce can contact Kelly.

  • Volunteers interested in gleaning or distributing food can contact Kelly and she will send you the links to sign up. Please spread this info to any potential volunteers! 

MFC Partner Winter Updates

Bowdoinham Community Development Initiative:

Brunswick Topsham Land Trust: 

Cooperative Development Initiative:

  • CDI participated as a presenter in MFC’s December Farm Labor Roundtable, sharing information about the potential value and structure of cooperatives as a tool to address the current farm labor shortage while supporting farm workers.

  • The Cooperative Development Institute is looking at ways to help farmworkers come together to get matched up with farms in need of specific types of workers. PLEASE take 5-7 minutes to complete THIS SHORT SURVEY to help CDI assess your needs as a farmer and the relevance of this project in our state of Maine. Please pass this onto any other farmers that you think might be interested in this project or have needs for farm labor.

  • CDI and Cooperative Maine Business Alliance just released a new video: Local Food in Cooperation!  It shares the stories of New Roots Cooperative Farm, Portland Food Co-op, Fedco Seeds, Cabot Creamery Cooperative, Tenants Harbor Lobster Co-op, CDI's Jonah Fertig-Burd, Isuken Co-op, Maine Farm & Sea Cooperative and Crown O'Maine Organic Cooperative and looks at the role of cooperatives in growing a resilient, equitable and inclusive food system.  

  • Contact: Katherine Bessey or visit https://cdi.coop/

Good Food for Bath:

Growing to Give:

  • For 2020, our area in production will increase by 30%.

  • We're planning next year's crops utilizing seed donations from High Mowing and Botanical Interests. 

  • For the first time, we'll be using a portable seeding trailer to start off the growing season this year.

  • Farmer Theda has been investigating more low-till/no-till practices to be implemented on the farm this year.

  • Representatives from Growing to Give will soon be meeting with some our New American neighbors to find out what we can grow for them.

  • Patty is developing our cooking with kids program. If you know of a school or youth group interested in coming to the farm to learn how to cook veggies, please email: patty@growingtogive.farm.

  • The Outreach Committee has been gathering to plan our summer events. This year we will be hosting a four-course farm-to-table dinner, a garden party, and the Farmyard Jam. More info coming soon.

  • We're always looking for volunteers. Come play in the dirt with us! Email info@growingtogive.farm if interested.

Kennebec Estuary Land Trust:

Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association:

Maine Food Strategy:

Maine Network of Community Food Councils:

  • MNCFC is made up of representatives from food councils around the state of Maine.

  • The MNCFC Lead Team includes: co-coordinators Ken Morse from Community Food Matters in Norway and Scott Vlaun from the Center for an Ecology-Based Economy in Norway. Other Lead Team members are: Bonnie Pooley from Local Food Connection in Bethel, Julia Harper from the Good Food Council of Lewiston-Auburn, and Harriet Van Vleck from the Merrymeeting Food Council.

  • MNCFC is playing a central role convening a group of statewide food system organizations through a Quimby Family Foundation funded effort. More details coming soon!

  • Contact: mainefoodcouncils@gmail.com or visit: http://www.mainefoodcouncils.net

Maine Gleaning Network:

  • The Maine Gleaning Network celebrated Maine Gleaning Week in October 2019. The focus was on building community and celebrating volunteers through gleaning. Events took place around the state throughout the week. 

  • Merrymeeting Gleaners and the MGN continue their role mentoring new gleaning groups around the state.

  • The annual MGN meeting was held January 8th in Waterville.

  • Monthly network call open to all covering various topics around gleaning: 1st Wednesday of each month, 2-3pm

  • Contact: mainegleaningnetwork@gmail.com or visit: https://www.mainegleaningnetwork.org

Maine SNAP-Ed:

  • Local Classes, Store Tours & Partnerships:

    • SNAP-Ed, Curtis Memorial Library, and Hannaford have been teaming up to bring 1 hour Store Tours to the Brunswick Hannaford. Tours have been successful and highly attended.

    • SNAP-Ed has also been doing fairly regular Cooking Matters and Ten Tips classes at Curtis Memorial Library. Also great attendance.

    • Last fall Cooking Matters Classes for Adults were held at each Bath Housing Site (Moorings, Dike’s Landing, Seacliff and Anchorage).

    • SNAP-Ed expanded classes to 3rd grade at Fisher Mitchell in Bath.

    • SNAP-Ed creates flyers for Dike Newell and Fisher Mitchell’s Fresh Fruit and Veggie Grant. These are distributed through classrooms and staff are developing new ways to successfully engage and reach parents/caregivers/children with relevant nutrition messages (e.g. recipes, videos, social media, direct education).

    • We work with local food pantries to increase interest in different, healthier items that pantries have a hard time getting people to take (Beans, prunes, dry soup mix, whole wheat pasta products). We are working with Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program to create flyers, conduct food demos and tastings.

    • In partnership with the Mid Coast Hospital system, SNAP-Ed will work as a referral partner for food security screening at Mid Coast, focusing on Maine Care offices.

    • For more information about local classes, contact: Ally Messier.

  • Statewide SNAP-Ed updates:

    • SNAC Initiatives: Our State Nutrition Action Council – comprised of multi-sector state and regional organizations – are working on building collective impact beyond the capacity of a single organization. One focus area for 2020-2021 will be promoting federal school meal and child nutrition programs (reduce stigma, increase quality, CEP, School Breakfast, summer meals).

    • SNAC is led by SNAP-Ed as the backbone organization. Our one-page document describing the SNAC and our regional and statewide partners involved is here.

    • To see a list of Maine SNAP-Ed educators, click here.

MidCoast Hunger Prevention Program:

  • MCHPP is partnering with Good Shepherd Food Bank and Mid Coast Hospital to distribute emergency food kits to any patient screening positive during the pilot food security screening at the Brunswick walk-in clinic.

  • MCHPP convenes food pantry leaders regionally through the Food Security Coalition of Mid Coast Maine.

  • MCHPP hired Eric Buch as Development Manager. Eric's educational background is in social work and he has a long career in fundraising, mainly with United Way. 

  • Core Program updates: MCHPP's Food Pantry saw 9,800 visits in 2019, an increase of 9.2% over the previous year. The Soup Kitchen served over 41,000 meals, a 1.1% increase over the previous year. The Food Bank processed over 1.2 million pounds of donated and salvage food, a 4.6% increase over the previous year. 

  • MCHPP started a new focus in 2019 on distributing bulk groceries to smaller pantries in the larger MidCoast region. In 6 months we distributed just under 50,000 pounds of groceries to community partners. 

  • Upcoming events: Martin Luther King Jr. Community Pasta Supper to benefit MCHPP on January 21st, Empty Bowls Project benefit dinner for MCHPP on February 28th at First Parish Church in Brunswick (more info to come).

  • NOTE: MCHPP is open for emergency food distribution outside of listed pantry hours - i.e. any time staff are there, emergency food is available.

  • Contact: General Info or visit: http://www.mchpp.org

Slow Money Maine:

  • SMM will be holding two On-the-Road Gatherings in 2020 in Dover Foxcroft and Houlton in the Spring and Fall - details coming soon!

  • For more information, please visit slowmoneymaine.com. Upcoming events, back stories, and an ever-changing blog of new and exciting developments in the Maine food sector can also be found here.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension: 

  • New Workshops, Classes, and Events around aquaculture, agriculture and the Maine Food System listed weekly at our Resource Page.

  • Ongoing events, see their Facebook Page.

Notes: Biodynamic Talk and Workshop at Maine Coast Waldorf School

Update from Biodynamic Talk and Workshop sponsored by Maine Coast Waldorf School, The Resilience Hub and the Biodynamic Association.

Climate, Carbon & Compost: How Biodynamic Gardening & Land Stewardship Can Help Us Embrace an Uncertain Future, was the topic of a public talk on October 4, presented by Thea Maria Carlson, Executive Director of the Biodynamic Association in this country. The next day, a hands-on workshop  created a compost pile using six biodynamic compost preparations to enliven the soil, hold carbon and help restore balance to the climate.


At the evening talk, Thea described her experience of working in the rainforest in 2001, as a student in Earth Systems at Stanford University. She witnessed first-hand the burning of the forest to develop agricultural land. This experience led her to farming, gardening, nutrition, education and her dedication to building living soil, growing nutritious food and nurturing vibrant communities. 


Carbon has been demonized in our minds due to climate change, but carbon is the basis of all life. Fossil fuels used to be plants and animals. Our responsibility is to bring carbon back into balance. The impact of industrial agriculture and food choices that create more and more demand for beef and field crops to support feedlots have been major contributors to this imbalance.


Biodynamics uses a holistic and ecological approach to gardening and nutrition. This renewal started in 1924, when a group of farmers in Europe approached Rudolph Steiner, philosopher and scientist, out of their grave concerns over the rapid deterioration of soil health. Ninety five years later, there are Biodynamic Farms all over the world, including over 100,000 in India!


The recognition of spirit in nature is the foundation for the principles and practices of Biodynamics. They include the following:

  • The farm/garden is a living organism made up of many interdependent elements: fields, forests, plants, animals, soils, compost, people, and the spirit of the place.

  • The cultivation of biodiversity, inspired by natural ecosystems, and landscape, include plants and animals, amplifying the health and resilience of the farm organism through generating on-farm fertility.

  • Compost is enlivened with Biodynamic preparations. These medicinal herbs stabilize nitrogen and other nutrients, increasing microbial diversity. This process also brings more carbon into the soil, helping to restore balance to the climate.

  • Biodynamic sprays are used to enhance soil and plant health providing greater resilience to pests, diseases and extreme climate conditions.

  • Biodynamics works in rhythm with the earth and the cosmos, using detailed astronomical information and indications of optimal times for sowing, transplanting, cultivating, harvesting and using the BD preparations.

Biodynamics is not a fixed recipe or prescription. Cultivating awareness strengthens our ability to work creatively with the dynamics of the land and wider bio-region, and to bring the vibrancy of the farm organism to full expression.


From Notes compiled by Christine Sloan. More at  info@biodynamics.com 

Merrymeeting Food Council Summer Update

Network Building & Food System Support

To fulfill our aim of bringing partners and community together to discuss pressing issues facing the food system in our region, MFC plans to host a few community conversations each year.

In June, we held our first community conversation focused on barriers to food access and wellness in our region with MFC and partners from Mid Coast Hospital, Harpswell Aging at Home, and Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program presenting and discussing how to support our communities. Read a recap and see the presentations...

Our next community conversation, in early winter, will focus on ways to address the labor challenge faced by many farms in our region. If you would like to be involved in planning, please reach out! To put the local farm labor discussion in a statewide context, here are two Maine Calling pieces that aired on MPR earlier this summer. The first is with Commissioner Laura Fortman from the Maine Department of Labor, and in the second piece you can hear about the workforce shortage from a broader panel. MFC would love to hear from you! What innovative ideas do you think might work in our region?

If you have a topic you would like to see as the focus of a conversation, please reach out!

Food Access & Health

As part of MFC’s work to increase access to healthy local produce for all in our region, MFC has created Community Nutrition Resource Guides for all 14 of our communities! They are available for free on our website and we are counting on our network to help spread the word about these guides. They will be updated regularly so please check back for the latest versions and let us know if you see any updates needed or missing information.

MFC’s Merrymeeting Gleaners and SNAP-Ed worked together to finalize a booklet of recipes and storage information for 50 types of commonly gleaned fruits and vegetables. Download the KNOW YOUR VEGGIES! booklet.

One outcome of our community food access work over the past year was the recognition that there are communities in our region interested in starting or adding community meals. These are a simple way of building community and increasing access to healthy foods for all residents whether the barrier is transportation, time, or finances. MFC is supporting the development of a monthly Sunday Brunch by residents in Bowdoinham, with the first meal to be held Sunday, October 6th! MFC is happy to help convene residents of other communities interested in starting their own community meal program and can share ideas from Harpswell Aging at Home’s Lunch with Friends model for inspiration!

You can also catch up on more news from MFC’s Merrymeeting Gleaners, MFC Partner Updates and Food System News!

Let us know how you would like to see our local and statewide food system grow? Are there connections you would like to make with other sectors of the food system? Email us with ideas.

Hope you are enjoying these gorgeous late summer days!

Summer Food System News

- FOOD ACCESS & HEALTH:

  • The USDA’s Economic Research Service recently released a report on Household Food Security in the United States in 2018. Read more here.

- FARMS & FOOD PRODUCERS:

GarlicChives.jpg

  • MFC is beginning to look at innovative solutions to the labor challenges faced by local farms and will be hosting a community conversation about this in early winter. If you would like to be involved in planning, please reach out! To put the local labor discussion in a statewide context, here are two Maine Calling pieces that aired on MPR earlier this summer. The first is with Commissioner Laura Fortman from the Maine Department of Labor, and in the second piece you can hear about the workforce shortage from a broader panel. MFC would love to hear from you! What innovative ideas do you think might work in our region?

  • In Unity, Maine Harvest Credit Project has officially been chartered as a new credit union focused on making affordable member business loans to farmers and food producers.

  • Farms and other food system businesses can promote their businesses through the Maine Office of Tourism…learn more here.


- FOOD TO INSTITUTIONS:

  • A report, “Regional Trends in New England Farm to Institution Procurement Policy,” was released in August which provides an overview of policies in place in each New England state which encourage or require institutional purchases of local foods. The report is from the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems (CAFS) at Vermont Law School and Farm to Institution New England (FINE). Read the full report to compare New England state policies or just a snapshot of the Maine Policies.

  • Maine’s DOE opened a new Culinary Classroom in Augusta in September to train and educate food system workers. See a short video about it here. See a schedule of upcoming professional development and training events from DOE here.

  • Maine DOE's Harvest of the Month program for schools was piloted last Spring with 165 schools and the full roll out of the program began this Fall. For more information, contact: Stephanie Stambach, Child Nutrition Consultant (207-624-6732), or visit www.maine.gov/doe/harvestofthemonth/.

  • Read about sourcing of sustainable seafood at two UMaine campuses from GMRI.

- POLICY:

  • Learn about the USDA’s proposed changes to the Federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The public comment period ends on September 23rd. Read the proposed changes and news coverage here.

  • Summer federal policy roundup from the Food Research and Action Center is here.

  • Read about Representative Pingree’s Keep America's Waterfronts Working Act here and learn more through support for the bill from Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association.

  • Existing food system bills and new laws:

    • LD 541: Resolve, To Reduce Food Waste in Schools.

    • LD 497: An Act Regarding the Providing of Human Food Waste to Swine Producers.

    • LD 454: An Act To Encourage the Purchase of Local Produce for Public Schools.

    • LD 786: An Act To Reduce Hunger and Promote Maine Agriculture.

    • LD 1159: Resolve, To End Hunger in Maine by 2030.

  • Food system bills being prepared:

    • LD 1531: An Act To Establish the Maine Food System Investment Program To Create Quality Jobs and Support Farms, Fisheries and Food-related Businesses.

    • LD 1679: An Act To Promote Clean Energy Jobs and To Establish the Maine Climate Council.

    • LD 400: An Act To Authorize a General Fund Bond Issue for Food Processing Infrastructure in Targeted Areas of the State.

    • LD 1167: An Act To Increase Consumption of Maine Foods in State Institutions.

- STATEWIDE PLANNING & ASSESSMENT:

  • Learn more in this recent story by Maine Food Strategy about building the story of food system change in Maine. Do you or someone you know have a case study to contribute?

  • Check out Maine Food Strategy’s new website and learn more about their work as a statewide food system planning entity.

  • Interested in how Maine compares to other states in terms of a range of food system characteristics? Check out these two interactive maps: Food Environment Atlas, and Food Access Research Atlas from the USDA - you can select what data you are interested in and view it at the county and census track level respectively.

  • A report on how to shift power dynamics within grassroots work was recently released by the New England Grassroots Environment Fund.

- CONNECT:

  • Let us know how you would like to see our local and statewide food system grow? Are there connections you would like to make with other sectors of the food system? Email us with ideas.

  • The Maine Food Atlas is ready and waiting for your business information to be entered. 

MFC Partner Summer Updates

Bowdoinham Community Development Initiative:

SummerFlowers.JPG

  • Catch up on the latest from BCDI in their recent newsletter! Note the work on the Farmland Inventory - a local process that can easily be replicated in other communities to connect farmers and landowners.

  • Contact: Ingrid Leschefske or visit https://www.bcdimaine.org.

Brunswick Topsham Land Trust: 

  • Tom Settlemire Community Garden Programming:BTLT has worked with Mt. Ararat Middle School, Coffin Elementary School, Perryman Village and Big Brothers Big Sisters to get over 200 area children out to the community garden to plant and harvest vegetables, pick and eat their own foods, and explore and play in the garden and surrounding conserved lands.

  • Perryman Village Education Program: BTLT launched a weekly education program that runs alongside Summer Feed.  BTLT partnered with MCHPP, EFNEP, Casco Bay Dental, ArtVan, Brunswick PD and Perryman Village for the program.

  • Children learned how to cook simple recipes using a solar oven with food from their garden, children have learned how to plant and tend their own gardens, children learning about giving away food to friends and neighbors from their gardens, made bug hotels and so much more!

  • BTLT Farmers’ Market at Crystal Spring Farm: BTLT offers farmers' market tours for SNAP families in order to make it easier for families to take advantage of the SNAP incentive program offered at the market by the Maine Federation of Farmers' Markets. BTLT was then able help the Bath Farmers Market SNAP incentive program develop their own farmers' market tour for Bath Food Pantry clients.

  • Curtis Memorial Library and food security groups in Brunswick have been discussing the need for a shareable mobile cooking unit to be used for cooking education. BTLT was able to connect a local property management company with Curtis Memorial Library, leading to the donation of an unused mobile kitchen unit. Curtis Memorial Library and partners are looking for a permanent home for the unit where it could be rented out to community groups offering food and cooking education. If you are interested in using or housing the mobile kitchen, please contact the Merrymeeting Food Council.

  • BTLT Needs Your Input! A building at Brunswick Landing includes space that could be converted into food system resources: commercial kitchen, auction, indoor farmers’ market, food hub, co-op, retail or restaurant…the options are fairly wide open at this point. If you are a food producer or processor looking for some space or shared space, or interested in starting a new enterprise, please contact Merrymeeting Food Council with your interest and ideas.

  • Contact: Jamie Pacheco or visit https://www.btlt.org/

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Good Food for Bath:

  • Next meeting: 9/30 at KELT’s Office in Bath, 12-1:30, 92 Front Street, 2nd Floor.

Growing to Give:

  • As of 7/30 we are up to 2400 lbs harvested and delivered. Our food is now being harvested and delivered 3 times a week. Mondays, Androscoggin Gleaners deliver to Lisbon Falls, Lewiston and Auburn. Wednesday and Fridays, Merrymeeting Gleaners deliver our food to 10 locations.

  • We have had 2 college interns this summer from Bowdoin College and Bennington College, along with 7 woofers so far, for varying lengths of stay. They have been invaluable along side our regular weekly volunteers keeping ahead of the weeds and multiple tasks that need to be done each week.

  • We hosted a "worksong workshop" with Bennet Konesni and 30 middle schoolers and teachers from Greely Middle school in late May while they planted squash seedlings. We also had 2 high school groups from Maine Coast Waldorf School help prepare beds for planting.

  • We received funding from the Davenport Fund this spring for a wash station for vegetables, and from the Maine Women's Giving Tree to expand our reach to schools to bring more kids out to the farm to learn about farming practices, volunteering and food insecurity.  

  • We are currently seeking funding for a significant expansion for 2020 and one for developing a collaboration with local school groups that would provide cooking classes using a mobile kitchen. We are seeking funding to develop a pumpkin picking garden for low income families to come have an experience at the farm.

  • Steve Minich of Channel 8 in Portland recently aired a short piece about Growing to Give on the 6 o'clock news for the "Community Champion" segment.

  • Contact: Sandi Konta or visit: https://growingtogive.farm/

Kennebec Estuary Land Trust:

Let’s Go! 5-2-1-0:

  • On August 27th, all three school district nutrition and kitchen staff and directors from MSAD 75, RSU1 and Brunswick, joined forces for a joint training that included a 3 hour workshop from Chef Sam of the Windham Raymond School District. Chef Sam taught the kitchen staff how to incorporate more scratch cooking into their menus, how to make vegetables more fun to eat, and how to partner with and prepare local farm fresh produce.

  • 92% of our 49 sites completed the annual survey for recognition. Of those 68% were recognized by the home office for achieving success in the 5 priority strategies of Let’s Go at Bronze, Silver, or Gold Levels (59% of childcare sites, 100% of Out of School Programs, and 61% of schools).

  • In the spring spring all staff at Brunswick Junior High School (~70 teachers) received a 1 hour training about incorporating physical activity into the classroom.  The new Brunswick Junior High School Principal has asked that the Let’s Go coordinator work closely with her administration to help train staff how to incorporate more physical activity into the school day.

Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association:

Maine Network of Community Food Councils:

  • Resources:

  • MNCFC is made up of representatives from food councils around the state of Maine.

  • A Lead Team was recently formed which includes: Ken Morse from Community Food Matters, Julia Harper from the Good Food Council of Lewiston-Auburn, Scott Vlaun from the Center for an Ecology-Based Economy and Harriet Van Vleck from the Merrymeeting Food Council.

  • Beginning this summer a statewide group of “Network Weavers”, including representatives from MNCFC, has formed to create conditions for network practitioners to build stronger network mindsets, empower the development of equitable, dynamic movements through networks of networks, and increase access to funding. Current focus is on food systems policy.

  • Contact: mainefoodcouncils@gmail.com or visit: http://www.mainefoodcouncils.net

Maine Food Strategy:

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Maine SNAP-Ed:

  • Local Classes, Store Tours & Partnerships:

    • SNAP-Ed, Curtis Memorial Library, and Hannaford have been teaming up to bring 1 hour Store Tours to the Brunswick Hannaford. Tours have been wildly successful and highly attended.

    • SNAP-Ed has also been doing fairly regular Cooking Matters and Ten Tips classes at Curtis Memorial Library. Also great attendance.

    • This fall there will be Cooking Matters for Adults classes at each Bath Housing Site (Moorings, Dike’s Landing, Seacliff and Anchorage).

    • We have a new partnership with The Village Clubhouse in Topsham, Just finished a Ten Tips class and hope to do more programming later. They are also a new distribution site for the Merrymeeting Gleaners!

    • SNAP-Ed creates flyers for Dike Newell and Fisher Mitchell’s Fresh Fruit and Veggie Grant. These are distributed through classrooms and staff are developing new ways to successfully engage and reach parents/caregivers/children with relevant nutrition messages (e.g. recipes, videos, social media, direct education).

    • We work with local food pantries to increase interest in different, healthier items that pantries have a hard time getting people to take (Beans, prunes, dry soup mix, whole wheat pasta products). We will create flyers, conduct food demos and tastings.

    • In partnership with the Mid Coast Hospital system, SNAP-Ed will work as a referral partner for food security screening at Mid Coast, focusing on Maine Care offices.

    • For more information about local classes, contact: Ally Messier.

  • Statewide SNAP-Ed updates:

    • Annual Report and Infographic: The FY2018 Annual Report is complete and can be found on the Maine SNAP-Ed website. The FY2018 Infographic can be found on SNAP-Ed Connection under State Impact Reports.

    • Maine SNAP-Ed and Gleaning Poster Presentation: The team presented a poster at Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior (SNEB) conference in July – sharing the specific ways the SNAP-Ed supports gleaning initiatives across multiple food systems in Maine.

    • FINI Postcard Project: Maine Federation of Farmers’ Markets, Maine SNAP-Ed, Maine Farmland Trust and Maine DHHS OFI are collaborating on a FINI Postcard Project. This is the 3 rd time completing this project. The postcards will be sent to SNAP recipients to advertise farmers’ markets and co-ops that accept EBT. This mailing will be paired with social media efforts this summer.

    • Environmental Scan: UMaine Cooperative Extension EFNEP, Maine SNAP-Ed, and Let’s Go! with support from Maine CDC and Maine DHHS OFI are completing an Environmental Scan to highlight the focus areas of each organization and to identify overlap or gaps in service. A document is being created to capture a statewide overview with a goal of completing it in August.

    • Summer Meals Maps: Full Plates Full Potential and Maine SNAP-Ed collaborated on maps to assist food service directors with promoting their summer meal locations. These maps were created by the Maine SNAP-Ed graphic designer, and distributed digitally using social media. There have also been meetings with Lets Go! to discuss other ways to support school food service programs to increase participation in federal food assistance programs.

    • SNAC Initiatives: Our State Nutrition Action Council – comprised of multi-sector state and regional organizations – are working on building collective impact beyond the capacity of a single organization with these initiatives:

      • Support implementation of policies (child nutrition; physical activity; food/beverage access and quality) including evaluation of effectiveness.

      • School meal promotion (reduce stigma, increase quality, CEP, School Breakfast, summer meals).

      • Detailed outcomes and processes will be refined in the coming months.

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MidCoast Hunger Prevention Program:

  • MCHPP is partnering with Good Shepherd Food Bank and Mid Coast Hospital to distribute emergency food kits to any patient screening positive during the pilot food security screening at the Brunswick walk-in clinic.

  • MCHPP convenes food pantry leaders regionally through the Food Security Coalition.

  • MCHPP Food Pantry saw a 16% increase in visits during the first six months of 2019 when compared to the first six months of 2018.

  • Mobile Pantries expanded from once monthly in Harpswell to once monthly in Lisbon as well. MCHPP is also providing a mobile pantry to support the New Mainers community at Brunswick Landing.

  • The Backpack Program is currently undergoing a transition to a School Pantry model to provide students with more food and a wider variety of products (including fresh products). This was piloted in spring 2019 and will be rolled out to all 27 sites this fall. 

  • MCHPP providing breakfast, snack, and lunch for ESL classes at Curtis Memorial Library this month. 50 folks showed up on the first day!

  • NOTE: MCHPP is open for emergency food distribution outside of listed pantry hours - i.e. any time staff are there, emergency food is available.

  • Contact: General Info or visit: http://www.mchpp.org

Slow Money Maine:

  • Read about the SMM Grain Project (post harvest video here) and more in the summer SMM newsletter!

  • For more information, please visit slowmoneymaine.com. Upcoming events, back stories, and an ever-changing blog of new and exciting developments in the Maine food sector can also be found here.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension: 

  • New Workshops, Classes, and Events around aquaculture, agriculture and the Maine Food System listed weekly at our Resource Page.

  • Ongoing events, see their Facebook Page.

Maine Farmers' Needs & Priorities Report

Results from a statewide needs assessment of Maine farmers are shared in this full report and summary. The information presented in the report reflects the results from a statewide engagement process designed to identify and explore farmers’ needs and priorities in order to elevate these needs and priorities to the attention of decision-makers and agriculture service providers. You can get in contact about the report at maineagneeds@gmail.com.  

 

An important note from the cohort that developed the report: 

The data contained in this report are the direct feedback of participants engaged in a statewide outreach process carried out between August 2018 and January 2019 that was designed to gather input on the needs and priorities of Maine farmers. The framework of those discussions and this report was organized in accordance with the 2013 Strategic Plan of the Agricultural Council of Maine (AGCOM). Information in the report is strictly data with minimal interpretation. The next step in this initiative is for industry representatives to review the report, to identify themes that are representative of and broadly applicable to Maine’s diverse farming community, and to prioritize action items relevant to economic sustainability. Once identified, these unifying themes can serve as the basis for further program and policy development work that benefits Maine farms and businesses.