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…
USDA Designates Maine Counties as Primary Natural Disaster Areas – The designation, announced Friday 11/21, opens up emergency loans to primary and contiguous counties as outlined below. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, these counties suffered from a drought intensity value during the growing season of 1) D2 Drought-Severe for 8 or more consecutive weeks or 2) D3 Drought-Extreme…
Organic Certification of Maple Syrup Webinar January 13 @ 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm Free – $15 Join MOFGA Certification Service (MCS)’s Lead Maple Certification Specialist, Kristen Walker, to learn everything you need to know about organic certification of maple syrup. We’ll discuss the annual certification cycle, applicant deadlines, organic system plans, MCS maple guidelines, recordkeeping, materials inputs, and MCS…
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…
The Spring 2025 issue of The Organic Sprout is here – MOFGA’s biannual newsletter for certified organic producers. Contents include an update on the federal organic cost share program, a rare apple discovery, updates on the latest NOSB meeting, and must more. Remember – back issues of the Sprout can also be accessed from the…
Soil is Key to Organic Production MOFGA Certification Services, LLC has joined forces with five other leading organic certification organizations to release an official statement emphasizing the fundamental importance of soil-based farming for USDA Organic operations. MOFGA Certification Services, LLC has collaborated with OneCert, Inc., OneCert International Pvt. Ltd., Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association…
MOFGA and MOFGA Certification Services (MCS) are pleased to announce that we have been chosen as a core partner and the state lead for Maine through USDA’s Transition to Organic Partnership Program (TOPP). TOPP is one of three focus areas by USDA to transition more agriculture to organic (generally known as the Organic Transition Initiative),…
As many of you know, MCS works with the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry (DACF) to administer the USDA organic cost share rebate for certified producers located in Maine. This long established relationship has been a benefit to producers because MCS provides your certification fee information, and DACF requests the funds from USDA.…
Aroostook, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Somerset, and Washington Counties are eligible for emergency drought assistance from the Farm Service Agency For drought assistance, start by contacting your local USDA Farm Service Center. Farmers in Maine’s eligible counties have eight months from the date of a Secretarial disaster declaration, September 11, to apply for emergency loans. FSA considers each emergency…
The Spring 2020 issue of The Organic Sprout is available online! Please follow this link. You can read it from any device of your choice or download it as a PDF. Contents include Organic Certification During the COVID-19 Pandemic, MOFGA Certified Organic promotion extension, Wash & Pack Basic Design, Primary COVID-19 Resources and much, much…
The Fall 2018 issue of The Organic Sprout is available online! Please follow this link. You can read it from any device of your choice or download it as a PDF. Contents include the interim final rule for domestic hemp production, record keeping for organic livestock producers, compostable plastics, NOP updates, dealing with deer pressure…