PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 31, 2023
Lawmakers about to rewrite the nation’s agricultural policy got an earful Monday from Maine farmers, who say the next U.S. farm bill needs to be flexible enough to assist small, specialty farmers, fishermen and foresters who produce food, clothing and shelter. About 60 Maine farmers, food suppliers and rural development officials who spoke up to try to shape that policy at a field hearing of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee in Freeport. The lawmakers heard compelling stories about Maine’s front-line struggle with so-called forever chemicals, how they have ravaged the state’s farming community, and repeated calls to incorporate The Relief for Farmers Hit with PFAS Act into the next farm bill.