Interest in subscription program fuels young farm

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — When Gene Ripley and his wife, Mary Margaret, started farming in 2009, they broke new ground in ways besides simply plowing the fields. The young couple had no family background in farming, but wanted to grow healthy vegetables for themselves and others.

Contributed photo

    SOWING THE SEEDS OF THE FUTURE — Gene Ripley, of the Ripley Farm in Dover-Foxcroft, seeds peas recently for his farm’s Community Supported Agriculture subscription program. Ripley plans to harvest the peas for his farm’s members in July.

    Across the country, the current situation for family farms is challenging. Many are disappearing from the Maine landscape with the younger generations often leaving rural areas.
    But, according to agriculture specialists, small farms like Ripley Farm are part of a movement in which young people are returning to one of the world’s oldest professions, organic farming. The wave of new farmers on small tracts of land relies on people wanting to know where their food comes from and wanting to support their local farmers.
    According to Ripley, an innovative program linking small farms with consumers called Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is a source of optimism for the young farmers.
    “I like the CSA model because we really get to know the families that we’re growing food for,” says Gene Ripley.
    Before the seeds go in the ground, Ripley Farm has their future crop of organic vegetables already sold to the members of their farm subscription program, or CSA. Through a CSA, families buy a share in the farm’s harvest.
    This system provides cash upfront in the spring when farmers need money for seed and supplies. In exchange, CSA participants get a portion of the farm’s harvest.
    Shortly after starting their Dover-Foxcroft farm in 2009, Gene and Mary Margaret found support from nearby farmers by joining the group Maine Highlands Farmers. Initially they sold their vegetables through farmers’ markets and wholesale outlets.
    Then in 2011, the couple decided to branch out and look for new ways to expand their business. Ripley Farm offered their first CSA farm shares two years after purchasing land and starting their farm in Dover-Foxcroft.
    “I first got interested in farming because I wanted to know where my food was coming from,” says Ripley. The young farmers decided to start the CSA for the same reason, Ripley explains. “CSAs make solid the connection between people and the farmers that grow the food for their tables.”
    Nationwide, more and more people are looking for locally grown food. While Farmers Markets are popping up in many places, CSAs are also rapidly growing in popularity. According to the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, the interest in locally grown produce is on the rise in Maine as well.
    For the young farmers, the start of the CSA was an experiment. “Our first year was fairly small,” says Ripley of Ripley Farm’s CSA subscription program, “but we had a great group of very supportive members who spread the word about the program.”
    With membership more than doubling their second year, the Ripleys are expanding to welcome more new members in 2013.
    “There’s been a steep learning curve,” Ripley says of running a farm without family background or coaching. “But filling the CSA boxes every week puts a smile on my face… I know who is getting each bunch of carrots, each head of lettuce,” he says.
    More information on Ripley Farm’s vegetables can be found at www.ripleyorganicfarm.com.