On September 3, 2026, the Organic Farmers Association, in conjunction with the Northeast Organic Dairy Producers Association and the Western Organic Dairy Producers Alliance, released a guidance document and fillable form related to the Temporary Variance provisions in the organic regulations at 205.290. This resource provides details on how an operation can request a temporary…
August 5, 2026 Dear Maine-based MOFGA Certified Producer, MOFGA Certification Services (MCS) has been closely monitoring the organic cost share program and funding availability. In our last communication on July 9th, we recommended that Maine-based organic producers not apply through their county Farm Service Agency (FSA) for the cost share, because MOFGA works…
On Monday, July 6, 2026, USDA published rulemaking that releases organic cost share funds for the 2025 and 2026 calendar years. This means that producers will begin receiving payments in the next several months. Read the full rule here. FSA has also moved the deadline to apply to December 31st of each year. However,…
Join us over Zoom on December 10 from 2 to 3:30 pm ET for a virtual interactive session that will put the focus on farmers, creating space to share firsthand experiences and practical strategies for streamlining recordkeeping and reducing the stress of compliance. Recordkeeping is one of the biggest hurdles in organic certification, and for…
Bureau of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources We are sharing the following information provided by Tommy Higgins, State Executive Director, Maine Farm Service Agency. As of Thursday, September 18, six counties in Maine are now classified as D3 (Extreme Drought): Cumberland, Androscoggin, Kennebec, Franklin, Somerset, and Oxford. In addition, our coastal counties stretching from Washington to…