Grants help variety of projects, including honeybee research and UMaine partnership to develop hops industry

Projects include building the hops industry in Maine

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree announced today that Maine will be getting over $600,000 in federal Specialty Crop Block Grants to fund a number of effortsthat will strengthen and grow the local food economy. Pingree authored a provision of the recently passed Farm Bill that provides substantially increased funding for this program.

The grants cover a range of projects, from research into pest management for potatoes to a study of the effects of pesticides on honeybees to a joint project with the University of Maine to develop a hop industry in Maine.

"Maine has a great variety of small farmers and producers who are already contributing to our economy," Pingree said. "These types of investments were are announcing today will help them grow their operations and get involved in new crops, strengthening the local farm economy."

Pingree was the driving force behind a number of local food provisions in the Farm Bill signed by President Obama earlier this year, include a substantial increase in funding for the Specialty Crop Block Grant program.

The $602,678 grant will go to the Maine Department of Agriculture, which will distribute it to 11 projects around the state:

Supporting Maine Specialty Crop Producers with Food Safety Audit Preparation $27,256.
Partner with AgMatters LLC to educate specialtycrop growers about changes to produce safety rules as a result of the Food Safety Modernization Act and help them to successfully complete their specific Food Safety audit by providing technical assistance and food safety training for specialty crop producers.

Increasing the Nutrition Knowledge and Consumption of Specialty Crops by Maine Children and Adults $29,000.
Partner with the Maine Agriculture in the Classroom Council to increase consumption of specialty crops in the school cafeterias and purchases from local farmers‘ markets, farm stands and grocery stores by providing ready to use classroom lessons for teachers, hands-on experiential learning in the garden, and direct links to Maine‘s specialty crop producers.

Enhancing Consumer and Producer Awareness of Maine Maple Syrup $32,110.
Partner with the Maine Maple Producers Association to develop a downloadable Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plan for maple producers; develop high quality promotional materials and customized displays for maple education and promotion through: improving the Maine Maple Producers website, integrating downloadable HACCP plan and conducting food safety workshops for Maine maple producers.

Improving Maine Potato Yields through Increased Rotation Lengths and Improved Rotation Crop Profitability $125,000.
Partner with the Maine Potato Board to enable potato growers to expand current rotation lengths while directly and indirectly improving potato yields by identifying potential crops that could be grown in conjunction with potatoes that would allow producers improved economic returns.

Maine Potato Integrated Pest Management $125,000.
Partner with the Maine Potato Board, in collaboration with the University of Maine, to ensure an adequate response to the pest-related hazards confronting potato growers by providing support for growers through field monitoring, disease forecasting, and distribution of educational materials associated with integrated pest management (IPM).

Enhancing the Competitiveness of New England Specialty Crops through Regional Collaboration $6,000.
Partner with the Connecticut Department of Agriculture and Harvest New England Association, Inc. to break down the barriers to regional specialty crop purchases by educating producers at theHarvest New England Agricultural Marketing Conference and Trade Show, educating consumers at Harvest New England Days, and connecting wholesale buyers withwholesale specialty crop producers through five matchmaking meetings.

Honeybee Exposure To Pesticides In Maine – The Question About Neonicotinoids $27,154.
Partner with the University of Maine to increase the amount of information on the effects of neonicotinoid insecticides and other pesticides on honeybees by developing a database of honeybee exposure, based upon pollen trapping, for six landscapes throughout Maine.

Increasing The Food Safety Margin Of Wild Blueberries Through Improved Intervention Measures $56,875.
Partner with the Wild Blueberry Commission of Maine, in collaboration with the University of Maine, to reduce microbial loading on frozen processed wild blueberries by developing effective intervention technologies using chemical washing (chlorine, chlorine dioxide, lactic acid, and ozone).

Improving Integrated Pest Management Practices for Maine Wild Blueberry Growers $116,268.
Partner with the Maine Wild Blueberry Commission, in collaboration with the University of Maine, to decrease crop losses and increase revenues for wild blueberry growers by enhancing the integrated pest management (IPM) program for control of mummy berry and Botrytis blight through expansion of weather stations that provide forecasts on infection risk; developing a biological model of Monilinia vaccinii-corymbosi, the fungus which causes mummy berry disease; and investigating additional control materials to build fungicide resistance management into the mummy berry IPM system.

Building a Hops Industry in Maine $11,210.
Partner with the University of Maine to develop a successful hops industry by determining the best hops varieties for Maine and educating interested growers in sustainable hops production through workshops, fact sheets and videos posted online.

Administration $44,469.
Ensure that the State Agency and sub-awardees abide by Federal and State requirements and regulations by performing pre-award and post-award activities to administer Specialty Crop Block Grant Program funding.