Mission: Maine Farmland Trust protects farmland, supports farmers, and advances the future of farming. Our goal is not just to protect Maine farmland, but to revitalize Maine’s rural landscape by keeping agricultural lands working and helping farmers, and their communities, thrive.
Results: Since its founding in 1999, MFT has permanently protected nearly 300 farms and has helped to keep over 60,000 acres of farmland in farming while supporting over 900 farm families with direct services.
Programs: Between 2012 and 2017, Maine lost 10% of its farmland— the greatest loss in farmland Maine has experienced since the 1974 Census. The risk of loss is only increasing. Development pressure is rising in many areas of the state, especially the highly populated southern counties. The majority of Maine farmers are nearing retirement age without younger operators working alongside them, leaving an estimated 400,000 acres of farmland at risk. New and beginning farmers face challenges affording and accessing the land and tools they need to grow thriving businesses. At the same time, net income for Maine farmers decreased between 2012 and 2017, signaling that our farmers need more people to buy Maine farm products, and to value the true cost of agricultural production. Maine Farmland Trust is here to help meet all of these needs. We work to protect farmland, increase farm viability, help new farmers access land and build their business, and strengthen markets for locally grown products.
Maine Farmland Trust became an accredited land trust in October 2019, a status that can be renewed every five years. Accreditation means Maine Farmland Trust meets national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. Maine Farmland Trust demonstrated to the Land Trust Accreditation Commission its commitment to excellence. Accredited land trusts meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. These land trusts demonstrate the commitment to excellence by adopting Land Trust Standards and Practices, the ethical and technical guidelines for the responsible operation of a land trust, and meeting the accreditation requirements drawn from them. To learn more about land trust accreditation and the current accreditation status of Maine Farmland Trust, visit http//www.landtrustaccreditation.org/about.
