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Navy farm may boost local organic food industry
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Related Topics: Gambrills, Md.
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General manager Peter Bocharov, 40, left, and farm hand Rick Fisher, 53, right, work in the corn field Monday at Maryland Sunrise Farm in Gambrills.
Gambrills, Md. (Map, News) - If Anne Arundel is successful in negotiating with the Navy, organic produce at area stores and markets have a better chance of being grown locally.
The county is working out a deal to become a long-term leaseholder of the 850-acre U.S. Naval Academy Dairy Farm in Gambrills, home to the state’s largest single plot of organic farmland. The farm once provided milk for the Naval Academy.
“It is the last large piece of agricultural farm land in [the western] county,” said Marian Fry, co-partner of Maryland Sunrise Farms LLC, which operates the property. “There is more demand for sustainable local organics in Maryland.”
Locally, most organic produce outside of farmers markets comes from other states because the 80 certified Maryland farms cannot keep up with the demand, said Mike Klein, spokesman for Maryland Organic Food and Farming Association.
“It’s one of the fastest–growing sectors of the food economy,” Klein said.
Nationally, organic food products are a $17 billion industry, which is 3 percent of total food and beverage sales and steadily growing, said Holly Givens, public affairs adviser for the Organic Trade Association.
Though the number of organic farms in Maryland is growing, it is still a relatively small number, officials said. Nonprofits are helping farmers convert, as it takes three years to earn organic certification and can be a costly investment, said Karen Fedore, marketing specialist with the state Department of Agriculture.
FAST FACTS
“Organic” refers to produce that has not been chemically treated and livestock that has not received hormones, medication or steroids. The organic designation also requires cows and chickens to have open space to roam, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Nationally, organic food products are a $17 billion industry, which is 3 percent of total food and beverage sales and steadily growing, said Holly Givens, public affairs adviser for the Organic Trade Association.
jflanagan@baltimoreexaminer.com
Comments from Examiner Readers
6:04 PM MST on Mon., Jul. 7, 2008 re: "Maryland farmers squeezed by soaring fuel, fertilizer costs"
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2:02 PM MST on Mon., Jan. 21, 2008
re: "Harford has state’s only robotic milking machine"
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9:03 AM MST on Tue., Jul. 10, 2007
re: "Drought killing corn crop early this year, affecting livestock"
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12:17 PM MST on Fri., Jun. 15, 2007
re: "Harford has state’s only robotic milking machine"
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11:53 AM MST on Fri., Jun. 15, 2007
re: "Harford has state’s only robotic milking machine"
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9:11 AM MST on Fri., Jun. 15, 2007
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12:49 PM MST on Tue., May. 22, 2007
re: "New legislation to help preserve farms and aid the environment"
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4:57 AM MST on Thu., May. 3, 2007
re: "Cost of milk leaves gas prices in the dust"
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Examiner Reader said:
Rising fuel costs. Chineses drilling 85 miles off our coast while we import. No new refinery within 30 years Do not worry Obama has a tax plan to make it all ok.
1 agree | 2 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
This is the unfortunate price we pay by thinking and acting that gasoline prices would never change. Wait until winter hits because if it's cold, our prices are going to jump again. It's time to invest in renewable energies, I'd be more than happy to see O'Mally push for these over the new Calvert Cliffs Power Plants. Maybe farmers should be cut a deal to go back to solar and wind power for home and allow more money to be spared for fuel costs.
2 agree | 1 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Then what happens when the farmer's neighbor's well runs dry?
4 agree | 4 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
why does the cow look green?
112 agree | 118 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
The cows are out of luck, now that we are using corn for fuel. What a plan. It sounds good during good growing seasons, but what do you do now? We need to stop screwing around with band aids to fix our fuel supply problems and get serious about resources that are proven to work. Nuclear power, new refineries and drilling.
236 agree | 268 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
I saw my grandfather hand milk cows in a barn with only an oil lantern for light. What's the world coming to!!!
264 agree | 248 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Isn't it a little demeaning to refer to beautiful dairy cows as "toddlers" and a magnificent robotic milker as a "toy". The technology blows my mind that a cow can be milked by a robot. Good for the Dallams! Kate makes the BEST ice cream in the world at Broom's Bloom Dairy Store.
263 agree | 277 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Very interesting article on the robot. However, cows surely get more than "a pellet" while being milked. One pellet would be about the size of a piece of dogfood and would hardly lure the cows to the robot. I hope the cows get a good portion of pellets dumped in front of them when they enter the robot.
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Examiner Reader said:
That doesn't seem like a lot of milk production. are you missing a few zeros? Tim Feeser Carroll County Commissioners office
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Huh? said:
Doesn't the government subsidize milk? What an economic ripoff of citizens. Produce extra milk, waste lots of it then charge more for the little bit that is left.....amazing!
423 agree | 293 disagree
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