Press Releases

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), a longtime organic farmer and member of the House Agriculture Committee and House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, today announced federal funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to strengthen and expand the organic market in Maine. Crystal Spring Community Farm in Brunswick was awarded $100,000 through the USDA Agriculture Marketing Service’s (AMS) Organic Market Development Grant (OMDG) program. The funding will go towards a new packaging machine that will allow Crystal Spring Community Farm to expand current markets and enter new markets with its and other farms’ produce. USDA announced the second round of OMDG awards for 60 projects.

“During a time when our farmers are facing increased challenges due to extreme weather and rising costs, targeted federal support through programs like the Organic Market Development Grant program has a huge impact on small organic farms like Crystal Spring Community Farm. This funding will help Crystal Spring Community Farm and its network of organic producers expand the organic market in Maine—it’s a win for producers, consumers, and the environment,” said Pingree, Co-Chair of the House Organic Caucus. “As the Agriculture Committee and I work on a new Farm Bill, I am fighting to make the Organic Market Development Grant program permanent to support our organic farmers and to strengthen the organic food industry.”

“This award from USDA/AMS will be nothing short of transformational for a smaller organic farm like ours,” said Crystal Spring Community Farm Owner and Manager Seth Kroeck. “We work cooperatively with other growers of our size to access, larger wholesale markets and the recognition of our efforts by the USDA through the Organic Market Development Program is really significant.”

Pingree, alongside Sens. Angus King (I-Maine), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.) and Congresswoman Annie Kuster (D-N.H.), introduced the Organic Market Development Act to codify and increase support for the highly popular grant program, which would help resolve supply chain gaps as demands for organic products continues to rise.

In Congress, Pingree has distinguished herself as a strong supporter of organic and sustainable agriculture, authoring the landmark Agriculture Resilience Act, which sets a bold vision of reaching net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in U.S. agriculture by 2040. As the only House Agriculture Committee member who has on-the-ground experience as an organic farmer, Pingree is a voice for small family farmers and local agriculture producers during Farm Bill negotiations. Because of her leadership, the 2018 Farm Bill more than doubled funding for organic research, created the first federal produce prescription program, and created the local agriculture market program with permanent federal funding. 

In June 2022, Pingree hosted USDA Under Secretary Jenny Lester Moffitt at Crystal Spring Community Farm for a roundtable discussion with Kroeck, Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) Executive Director Sarah Alexander, and organic farmers from across Maine. 

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