Farm flood relief funds preparing to send out checks soon, as another $20M from state is readied

Volunteers pull debris off tomato plants at Natural Roots farm in Conway after the South River flooded its fields in July.

Volunteers pull debris off tomato plants at Natural Roots farm in Conway after the South River flooded its fields in July. STAFF FILE PHOTO/PAUL FRANZ

By JAMES PENTLAND

Staff Writer

Published: 08-18-2023 5:54 PM

As farmers continue to recover from July’s floods with the aid of community support, two government-sponsored funds are gearing up to issue their first checks.

With donations pushing the Massachusetts Farm Resiliency Fund beyond $2 million, applications are now open for the first round of funding. The first pot of money, approximately $1 million, will be spread evenly between all qualified applicants, according to information from United Way.

The philanthropic fund, created by United Way of Central Massachusetts and Gov. Maura Healey’s administration, is prioritizing damages from the heavy rains in July. Applications are due by Aug. 25, and the fund aims to distribute its first checks by the end of the month.

A second round of funding will be focused on need. According to United Way, parameters are being developed.

Numerous area lawmakers are set to host a fundraiser to support the Massachusetts Farm Resiliency Fund on Monday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Berkshire Brewing Co., 12 Railroad St. in South Deerfield. U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, state Sens. Jo Comerford and Paul Mark, and state Reps. Natalie Blais, Dan Carey, Mindy Domb, Lindsay Sabadosa, Aaron Saunders and Susannah Whipps plan to attend.

Meanwhile, the state is also preparing to open up applications for a $20 million fund, established by the state Senate and administered by the Department of Agricultural Resources, to compensate farmers for crop losses.

“The goal is to open up the application process by the end of August, with applications due the end of September,” Department of Agricultural Resources Deputy Commissioner Winton Pitcoff said.

He said the department is trying to keep the process simple, and is aiming to distribute the funds according to need.

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“We know the losses will be greater than the resources we have,” he said.

At the same time, individual growing operations have had at least some of their losses covered by generous donors to crowdfunding sites. Some farms that suffered heavy damage, including Natural Roots in Conway and the Somali Bantu Farmers in Northampton and Hadley, surpassed their fundraising goals on GoFundMe, while others are still closing in on theirs.

“The generosity of our community, near and far, shows us that the work we do here is deeply valued, that we are part of something larger than ourselves and that we should, indeed, keep going,” Natural Roots’ David Fisher posted on the site. The farm said it’s keeping its fundraising page open until the picture is clearer on the cost of riverbank stabilization and the extent of government aid.

As of Thursday, Mountain View Farm in Easthampton had raised $166,671 toward its $250,000 goal. The farm, which lost most of its summer community supported agriculture (CSA) produce as well as fall and winter crops across 45 acres, recently announced on Instagram that crews had planted its home field with crops “to coincide with our fall distribution, including scallions, lettuce, bok choy, kale, cabbage and rainbow chard.”

Grow Food Northampton has raised approximately $85,000, Executive Director Alisa Klein said, to help it recover from the damage caused when the Mill River burst its banks on July 10 and flooded most of the organization’s farmland and 325-plot community garden.

“We had an incredible community outpouring of support,” Klein said. “Over 200 people volunteered within the first week.”

People have given money and time, she said, joining work parties to help the 10 farmers who lease plots from Grow Food Northampton, cleaning up debris, righting toppled sheds and putting in all kinds of dirty, physical labor. Three more work parties are scheduled for the coming days to help the organic community garden recover, remediate the soil with compost and plant cover crops.

Grow Food Northampton has been able to make payments to the farm lessees and offer funds to some of the individual gardeners who lost their entire harvest, Klein said. Everything that was flooded has been lost, she said, though state agricultural inspectors said some “lower-risk” crops can be planted after 60 to 90 days.

The organization has also bought food from other farms for distribution to subsidized housing communities.

“This community does know how to step up,” Klein said. “People have given money and labor. It’s been very moving to host these work parties.”

James Pentland can be reached at jpentland@gazettenet.com