After thirteen weekends in a row with precipitation (a new record), the state was overdue for a weekend with mostly sunny skies and ideal field conditions. I’ve heard from several farmers that are still waiting to plant corn or just planted last week due to the inability to access fields. Hopefully the warm weather this week will help and farmers will be back on track for the 2025 season.
I hope you’ve all been able to enjoy some of the season’s first crops, including asparagus, fiddleheads, garlic scapes, and strawberries. Our household has been enjoying grilled asparagus on a weekly basis and just picked our first quart of strawberries over the weekend. Strawberries with local vanilla ice cream are on the menu this week; the perfect way to celebrate June Dairy Month!
While the agricultural community has been celebrating the first crops of the season, we’ve also experienced tremendous losses in recent weeks. Bill Crawford of Southwick, owner of New England Apiaries (Billy C’s raw honey) and a member of the Massachusetts Board of Agriculture, passed away after a tragic accident while tending his hives in Ohio. Bill’s sense of humor, passion for his family, friends, and beekeeping, and endless enthusiasm will be deeply missed. We continue to keep Bill’s wife, Elaine, and his five children in our thoughts.
Last week we also learned of the passing of Chris Basile, a beloved member of the Massachusetts State Building vendor team, assisting his wife Maureen and father Jim at Maureen's Sweet Shoppe during the fair. He also served as a Mason, Shriner, Jaycee and director of the Middlefield Fair. Chris’ sense of humor, kindness, and positive attitude will be missed by all. We are thinking of Maureen, Jim, and their extended family during this difficult time.
Our MDAR team has been on the road quite a bit this spring, participating in events and meetings with stakeholders across the state. In April, Deputy Commissioner Pitcoff, Food Security Director Juli Stelmaszyk, and I attended the Massachusetts Emergency Food Assistance Program (MEFAP) 30th anniversary event in Boston. It was a day of reflection on the incredible impact MEFAP has had in helping food insecure individuals while also supporting local farms through the purchases of fruits, vegetables, dairy, meat, and seafood items. MEFAP was funded at $42M in the FY25 budget and we are currently waiting for the reconciliation process to conclude to see what the final FY26 budget number will be. MDAR is proud to administer the funds for this program, and appreciate the partnership with the Commonwealth’s four Food Banks as we work together to find solutions to persistent hunger.
The Greater Boston Food Bank, which administers the purchasing of food with the other three food banks and over 1,000 food pantries across the state, recently released their fifth annual The Cost of Hunger in Massachusetts report. As indicated in the report, 1 in 3 Massachusetts households—approximately 2 million adults—reported food insecurity at some point over the past 12 months. Please take a few minutes to read the report and learn more about the efforts being undertaken to combat food insecurity in the state.
Our MDAR team once again volunteered to plant Marathon Daffodils along Newbury Street in anticipation of the Boston Marathon. We were joined by members of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, as well as Becca Miller of the MA Food System Collaborative. It’s always an uplifting morning getting to dig in the dirt and bring cheer to the city for residents, tourists, and runners. Thank you to Matt Piscitelli of Olson’s Greenhouses for growing the daffodils year after year and delivering the daffodils around the city to bring joy, hope, and commemorate the Boston Marathon bombings.
MDAR/EEA Staff with Matt Piscitelli of Olson’s Greenhouses with daffodils in hand ready to plant!
The MA Ag Youth Council participated in tours during Spring Break to the Boston Public Market (BPM), Urban Farming Institute (UFI) and Eastie Farm. The tours were an opportunity to showcase urban agriculture in the state and meet with fellow youth who are pursuing careers in agriculture. The youth were able to visit the agricultural vendors at BPM and learn about the market’s history and important role it plays with respect to Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) transactions. UFI is based in Mattapan and is committed to bringing affordable, healthy food and healthy programming to their community. They were able to purchase the beautiful, historic site where they farm in 2024. Eastie Farm is a community-based nonprofit organization that pursues climate justice, food security, and community resilience through urban agriculture, education, and the building of an equitable local food system. We learned about their Freight Farm hydroponic grow system and toured their geothermal greenhouse. It was an educational and interesting day for the youth!
EEA Secretary Rebecca Tepper chats with members of the Agriculture Youth Council at Eastie Farm
The Massachusetts State Grange hosted their second annual MA Ag in Action Expo at Mount Wachusett Community College this year. Members of our MDAR team attended and provided information to attendees, as well as networked with other vendors. Attendee numbers increased this year, as did the number of participating vendors. The addition of a farmers’ market was another way to connect attendees with the local food system. It was an informational day with panel sessions, tours of the school’s greenhouse, and connecting with food system stakeholders and consumers.
I was honored to attend and serve as the keynote speaker at MIT’s Water, Food and Agriculture Prize event. The event includes early-stage, student-led startups from across the US, awarding $50K+ in innovation grants annually to ventures driving the future of sustainable water, food, and agricultural solutions. The winning teams were Anomaly Bio, who “harnesses advanced fermentation technology and filamentous fungi to produce high-value protein ingredients that have the potential to strengthen supply chain resilience and improve the climate adaptability of food systems,” and Cocoa Potash, who “transform agricultural waste (from cocoa, palm nut and coconut) into 95% purity organic potash and potash fertilizer using eco-friendly technology.” It was an interesting evening of learning and making non-traditional stakeholder connections.
The Environmental League of Massachusetts (ELM) hosted their annual Earth Night celebration at Fenway Park in early May. The event is a great opportunity to connect with state agency, legislative, non-profit, and private sector colleagues that are all working to make a positive impact on the environment. This year’s awardees included Governor Maura Healey, climatetech pioneer Dr. Yet-Ming Chiang, and MIT President Dr. Sally Kornbluth. Congratulations to these well-deserving award recipients!
Deputy Commissioner Pitcoff, Ag Markets Resource Coordinator Mackenzie May, and I attended Central MA Grown’s (CMG) Annual Meeting at Deep Roots Distillery USA in Sturbridge. It was a great venue to host the meeting at, as Deep Roots sources from several local farms for their dining menu. It was a fun evening full of updates about the current and future promotional activities of CMG and chance to connect with their members. As one of ten Buy Local organizations in the state, CMG plays a pivotal role in connecting consumers to farms in the region.
Our MDAR team attended the Greenfield Bee Fest, held annually on the Greenfield Common to celebrate the importance of honeybees and pollinators to Massachusetts agriculture. We were excited to unveil our new “MassGrown Bee” sculpture that will be displayed at the Massachusetts State Building on the Eastern States Exposition fairgrounds. Thank you to Rachel Katz, the sculptor, and Melissa Pandina, who painted the MassGrown Bee. It beautifully captures the diversity of Massachusetts agriculture. “Bee” sure to stop by the MA Building this fall to see it in-person!
Unveiling of the ”MassGrown Bee” with state and community leaders.
I traveled to Chicago in mid-May for the NASDA Foundation Board meeting and National Restaurant Association Show. It was a good opportunity to meet with some of our Massachusetts businesses that were in attendance, including Dimitria Delights, Eastern Fisheries, Inc., Jaju Pierogi, North Coast Seafoods, and VerMints. MDAR’s Market Access Coordinator, Bonita Oehlke, works closely with businesses throughout the year to help with logistics and cost-share opportunities through Food Export-Northeast. Massachusetts had six businesses participate in the NASDA Taste of the States Pavilion this year, with more interested in exploring the opportunity in future years. It’s a great way for companies to connect with buyers and build relationships across the country.
Worcester Regional Food Hub (WRFH) held its much-anticipated ribbon cutting event at Worcester’s historic Union Station with farmers, food businesses, legislators, and supporters in attendance. The food hub will offer commercial kitchen space for small businesses and food system members to utilize. Through the partnership of local, state, and federal leaders, the vision for the food hub was brought to fruition. The Food Security Infrastructure Grant (FSIG) was one funding source for the project, with Congressman McGovern securing significant funding at the federal level. Congratulations to the WRFH team!
The Growing Wild launch event was held at the end of May at Rogers Hill Spring Garden Center in Haverhill. Growing Wild is a partnership between MDAR, the MA Department of Conservation and Recreation, and MA Nursery and Landscape Association. Celebrating the five-year anniversary of the program, Growing Wild has helped to promote native plant habitat that supports pollinators, birds, and other wildlife throughout the Commonwealth. The kick-off event includes several nurseries and garden centers throughout the state that provide free native plants and information to customers. Interest in the initiative continues to grow year after year.
The first Agricultural Literacy Summit was held in Grafton, co-hosted by Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom and the Massachusetts Food System Collaborative. The event brought together teachers from across the state to help their students understand and appreciate farming. Panel discussions were held throughout the day and highlighted what actions can be taken to make sure students learn about how agriculture connects to their lives and the world around them. We will be exploring more opportunities to enhance agricultural literacy through future collaboration and events.
Our MDAR team kicked off June Dairy Month with tours to Pine Island Dairy and Maple Shade Farm in Sheffield and Luther Belden Farm in Hatfield. Pine Island Dairy, owned by the Aragi family, recently protected more land through the APR program and now owns nearly 1,000 acres of APR land. Maple Shade Farm, owned by father-son duo of Morven and Ian Allen, farm on 155 acres and protected more land in the past year under the APR program. Luther Belden Farm has been in the same family since 1661, spanning 13 generations and is also an APR farm. The farm visits showcased innovation through the use of anerobic digesters and robotic milkers, diversification, and environmental stewardship of land resources. With National Ice Cream Month starting next week, be sure to continue to visit your local dairy farms for fresh, nutritious dairy products!
Commissioner Randle with MDAR Staff and members of the Ag Youth Council present a Governor’s Proclamation to Morven and Ian Allen of Maple Shade Farm.
The Northeastern Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NEASDA) Regional Meeting took place in early June in Mystic, CT and several members of our MDAR team attended. This year’s theme was “Resiliency through Diversity” and was highlighted through panel discussions focused on women in agriculture, CT Homegrown by Heroes veteran farmers, and climate smart agriculture and forestry. We also enjoyed tours of the Mashantucket Pequot Museum, UConn Extension’s Project Oceanology at Avery Point, and Seacoast Mushrooms, as well as networking opportunities with fellow state colleagues and industry partners. MDAR was well represented on the Food Export-Northeast panel by Market Access Specialist, Bonita Oehlke, who shared about her work with businesses to expand their export activities. My colleagues and I discussed timely topics during our state reports that included labor/workforce development, climate change mitigation, grant programming, federal funding/program impacts, and potential impacts to SNAP and hunger relief efforts should Congress pass the “Big, Beautiful Bill.”
I was also honored to be elected President of NEASDA and to have the opportunity to lead the organization over the next year. We will host NEASDA’s Regional Meeting in Amherst, MA, June 7-10, 2026. Ag Markets Resource Coordinator Mackenzie May will be leading the planning efforts for our team. Stay tuned for more details!
The Massachusetts Beekeepers Association hosted its annual summer meeting at Bristol County Agricultural High School, the site of one of two State Apiaries (the other is located on the UMass-Amherst campus). While it was a difficult day for the beekeeping community due to the recent loss of Bill Crawford, it was also a day of reflection and honoring Bill’s love of bees. MDAR’s Apiary team was in attendance to provide demonstrations, share educational information, and connect with beekeepers from across the state. Despite the rainy conditions, the event was very well attended and enjoyed by all. Thank you to Superintendent Derek Costa, Trustee Darrin Mendes, and the team at BCAHS for being such gracious hosts.
Lastly, hot off the press is the filing of the Mass Ready Act. More commonly known as the Environmental Bond Bill, the historic $2.9 billion investment will strengthen and protect Massachusetts communities against increasing extreme weather events. This legislation, the largest environmental investment in state history, focuses on crucial infrastructure improvements, including upgrades to dams, bridges, and culverts. The bill emphasizes the protection of water and nature by ensuring safe drinking water, protecting our waterways, and preserving vital habitats for wildlife. Finally, the Mass Ready Act invests in local economies by supporting farmers, ensuring families have access to fresh, local produce and seafood, and providing communities with resources to reduce flood and heat risk. A more detailed outline of the agricultural provisions can be found here: Mass Ready Act | Mass.gov.
*Save the date for Ag Day at the Park! We invite all MA farmers, growers, families and friends to join us at the Worcester WooSox game Friday, September 5th !
We reserved our own section (up to 150 tickets) which includes buffet, and Friday night fireworks. We hosted this event in 2022 and had a wonderful night! Dairy Farmers were the biggest group of attendees then, let’s see which group of farmers turns out in the biggest numbers this year!!
Please reserve your tickets to the event here and extend the invitation to your friends and family.
I look forward to connecting with you at farmers markets, agricultural fairs, and events throughout the summer!
Locally grown and proud,
Ashley