BOSTON — With a background in showing cattle at fairs and working on the family farm in South Deerfield, the state’s new agriculture commissioner has a Franklin County flair to her.

South Deerfield native Ashley Randle has been tapped by the Healey-Driscoll administration as the 21st Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) commissioner. Beginning March 6, Randle will become the first woman appointed to lead the department as she takes on the role of ensuring Massachusetts’ food supply is secure and helping guide the state’s more than 7,200 farms through a changing climate.

Randle has spent the last four and a half years as a MDAR deputy commissioner overseeing legislative and policy affairs, and will step into the role as commissioner in place of John Lebeaux.

“I’m very grateful to the Healey-Driscoll administration [for giving me] the opportunity to serve as commissioner,” Randle said in an interview. “In this new role, I’ll really be focused on ensuring we have a safe and secure food supply across the commonwealth and making sure underserved communities have access to local and Massachusetts-grown products.”

Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper said Randle will be a good addition to the state’s leadership team.

“As we build our leadership teams in the Executive Office Energy and Environmental Affairs, I’m glad Ashley is joining the Healey-Driscoll administration,” Tepper said in a statement. “Having been raised on a dairy farm, Ashley deeply understands and appreciates the agriculture industry. Her experience will be critical to guiding agricultural policy for our state, supporting our farmers and fisheries, and promoting access to nutritious foods in every community.”

Franklin County roots

It’s almost as if Randle was born for this role.

Raised on her family’s fifth-generation South Deerfield farm, Indian Acres, she took an interest in showing the family’s Guernsey cattle at the Franklin County Fair and other events. After graduating from Frontier Regional School, Randle went to Cornell University, where she served as a member of the school’s dairy judging team — “Yes,” she said, “there is such a thing” — before heading on to Western New England University School of Law to study environmental law.

From there, she spent time at Maine’s Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry and at Northeast Dairy before joining MDAR as a deputy commissioner, where she oversaw legislation and policy direction, as well as food safety programming.

“All of these experiences really culminated in an extensive background in agriculture,” Randle said.

And, despite living in central Massachusetts right now, Randle said she tries to visit the family farm every week to do some work and visit the newborn calves, noting that farm work can be “therapeutic.”

Besides the family farm, part of Randle’s passion for agriculture comes from hikes up Mount Sugarloaf, where the view at the top shows acres upon acres that are protected by the state’s Agricultural Preservation Restriction (APR) Program.

“It would look vastly different,” Randle said of the land if it weren’t protected “in perpetuity.” “That really hit home.”

Stepping into the role

As Randle transitions to MDAR commissioner, she said the two biggest challenges facing Massachusetts farmers are climate change and a competitive labor market, in all industries, that makes it difficult for farms to hire.

“We are very forward-thinking in Massachusetts and our farmers are incredibly resilient, but when you’re faced with so many factors it can be daunting,” Randle said.

One of her priorities to tackle that challenge is to commit the agency to more outreach and agriculture education. Part of that is ensuring people of all identities and backgrounds are welcomed and supported in their agricultural efforts.

“To ensure we have the next generation of farm successors and farm owners, we have to continue to engage everyone and bring them to the table,” Randle said. “It’s really important for me that everyone has a seat, as well as a voice at the table.”

Part of that promotion is also aimed at consumers. Randle said community interest in buying local food, especially at farmers markets, rose during the pandemic and part of having a “robust local food system” across the state is encouraging people to spend their money in their town.

Through her time with MDAR, Randle has built a network of connections that help expand the reach of the agency’s programs. President of the Massachusetts Association of Dairy Farmers David Shepard said his organization looks forward to working with her.

“Ashley is a proven leader with a passion for local agriculture and has a deep understanding of the commitment necessary to produce food in the commonwealth,” Shepard said in a statement. “We will proudly work with her to help feed our citizens.”

Randle will be promoted to commissioner on March 6 and said she hopes to build out the state’s agriculture network.

“I’m looking forward to working with the Healey-Driscoll administration to continue to build more relationships,” she said. “To solve problems, we have to have everyone at the table.”

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-4081.

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