Young Farmers Regional Meetings

January 04, 2006

The Young Farmers and Ranchers Committee have started hosting a series of regional meetings to recruit more interest from more localized regions to bring back to the state Committee.  The central Maine region has a growing group that has many activities planned in Newport.

Join the committee at the Newport Entertainment Center for a brief planning meeting followed by pizza and bowling.  There is plenty of fun and fellowship, as well as the opportunity to address any  issues and plan events.

Upcoming events include:

• Young Farmers in the Legislature Day
• Safety Demo at 2007 Maine Farm Days
• Winter Outing in China Lake
• Northeast Regional Leadership Conference in Burlington, VT
• National Leadership Conference in Jacksonville, FL

Much more to be discussed.  Contact Jasmine at Maine Farm Bureau: 1-800-639-2126 or Ethan Robertson, Committee Chair at: 474-5090

View calendar entry

Spring and Summer Update by Pam Harnden, Chair

December 14, 2006

April found the Maine Women's/Ag Education Committee at the State House for Ag Day in the Legislature.  Baskets of Maine producded or processed items were presented to the Governor, the Speaker of the House, the President of the Senate and the two Minority Leaders.  A number of Farm Bureau youth acted as Honorary Pages, where they saw the process up close.  They then had lunch at the State Grange and visited the Maine State Museum.  The Committee also offered a variety of quick breads and donuts made with Maine ingredients along with information about Farm Bureau and what we do.

Three members attended the Multi-State Conference in Wheeling, West Virginia in April.  They attended the workshops, which were very informative.  They laughed a lot, learned new things and listened to each other's hopes and concerns.

In May, we organized the High School Discussion Meet, which took place during the FFA State Convention at the University of Maine.  8 youth particpated in the meet and some of these young people expressed interest in YF&R activities.

May also found us offering a "Getting Started" Workshop for farmers interested in offering value-added items at their farms or farmers markets.  A potluck supper started the evening, and then information was presented on the different permits and licenses that various food require.  After questions were answered, a presentation on basic website design was given.  Those attending the workshop were very pleased with the program, judging by the positive comments and evaluations passed in.

At Maine Farm Days this year, we sold Gifford's ice cream to help support our programs.  We were much more successful this year than last and cleared pver $500.