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Crop Insurance for Specialty and Organic Crops Grow as Options Improve and Expand 

The Risk Management Agency (RMA) is beefing up crop insurance options for specialty crop and organic producers, including rolling out new and expanded options based on feedback from America’s agricultural producers. RMA achieved this by accelerating outreach efforts and hearing directly from producers across the country by hosting in-person and virtual roadshows and making investments…

Farm-Bill

Farm Bill Listening Session

We would like to formally invite you to a Farm Bill listening session on Monday, July 31, 2023 at 2pm at Freeport High School which is located at 20 Holbrook Street in Freeport, Maine. Congresswoman Pingree, Chairman Thompson and other members of the House Agriculture Committee will have the opportunity to hear from Mainers about the issues…

Organic Market Development Grants Deadline Extended – 8/8/2023

Organic Market Development Grants  OMDG Application Deadline Extended & Webinar  The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has extended the deadline for the Organic Market Development Grants (OMDG) Request for Applications (RFA) to August 8, 2023.  Through OMDG, USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) will issue up to $75 million in competitive grants. Eligible entities include businesses…

USDA Announces OTECP Program for 2022

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on May 16, 2022 that it will provide pandemic assistance to cover certification and education expenses to agricultural producers who are certified organic or transitioning to organic. USDA will make $20 million available through the new Organic and Transitional Education and Certification Program (OTECP) as part of USDA’s…

Deadline Extended to Apply for Pandemic Support for Certified Organic and Transitioning Operations

WASHINGTON, Dec. 21, 2021— The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has extended the deadline for agricultural producers who are certified organic, or transitioning to organic, to apply for the Organic and Transitional Education and Certification Program (OTECP). This program provides pandemic assistance to cover certification and education expenses. The deadline to apply for 2020 and 2021 eligible expenses is now Feb. 4, 2022, rather than the original deadline…

USDA Restores Organic Cost Share Through Pandemic Assistance

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on November 4, 2021 that it will provide pandemic assistance to cover certification and education expenses to agricultural producers who are certified organic or transitioning to organic. USDA will make $20 million available through the new Organic and Transitional Education and Certification Program (OTECP) as part of USDA’s broader Pandemic Assistance for Producers initiative, which…

Organic Advocates Appeal District Court Decision Authorizing Labeling of Soil-less Hydroponic Operations as Organic

May 19, 2021 SAN FRANCISCO—Yesterday, Center for Food Safety (CFS), along with a coalition of organic farms, certifier, and organic stakeholder groups, filed an appeal with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, appealing a district court’s ruling issued this March that authorizes the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to continue certifying soil-less hydroponic operations as organic under the Organic label. In the lower court case, CFS had argued that hydroponic operations cannot comply with federal organic standards…

USDA Invests More Than $330 Million in Specialty Crops Grants, Incentives to Purchase Fruits and Vegetables, Help for Cotton Producers

USDA Also Informs Dairy Producers and Processors about New Dairy Donation Program The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced the availability of more than $330 million to help agricultural producers and organizations in the food supply chain recover from the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The funding announced is part of USDA’s Pandemic…

DACF News Release – Infrastructure needs survey is critical for your industry

The Maine Departments of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry; Marine Resources; and Economic and Community Development invite you to help identify how best to support your industry, should any federal or state funding become available to support investment in Maine’s heritage industries.  For this survey’s purpose, please consider infrastructure and innovation needs to include: transportation, storage,…