News

Farmers and fishermen rely on state and federal grant programs to help them adapt to climate change and other pressures, and to take advantage of new opportunities and concepts to remain viable. The Collaborative has investigated the spending of many of the grant programs administered by the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) to help […]

These materials were presented at the November 2019 MA Food System Forum. Keynote (Dr. Becca Jablonski): Tensions and Trade-offs in Food System Work Lobbying for Nonprofits workshop (Allen Mattison): Strategic Advocacy Lobbying Basics Permissible Issue Advocacy vs. Prohibited Campaign Intervention Using the Section 501(h) Lobbying Definitions

These materials were presented at the November 2019 MA Food System Forum. Keynote (Dr. Becca Jablonski): Tensions and Trade-offs in Food System Work Lobbying for Nonprofits workshop (Allen Mattison): Strategic Advocacy Lobbying Basics Permissible Issue Advocacy vs. Prohibited Campaign Intervention Using the Section 501(h) Lobbying Definitions

On September 27 the Joint Committee on Public Health held a “Food Is Public Health Oversight Hearing” in Greenfield. Speakers included advocates and practitioners from across the Commonwealth, all speaking to the need for programs and investments in healthy eating as critical to protecting public health. A written summary and video of the full hearing […]

The Collaborative joined many other stakeholder groups in providing recommendations for the Rural and Working Lands and Climate Change and Resiliency groups that led to the recently released Rural Policy Plan (RPP). There are many important parallels with the Massachusetts Local Food Action Plan (MLFAP), and a number of specific recommendations that are similar or […]

Attend the 3rd Annual MA Food System Forum to learn new skills, celebrate successes, and collaborate across disciplines to increase equity and sustainability in the MA food system. 

A report on the first year of operation for the Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) has been published, laying out patterns of initial use, and identifying issues to address for the long-term health of the program.  The largest number of HIP points of sale were located in Middlesex and Worcester counties, two of the largest counties […]

The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) has proposed composting regulations that, if adopted as written, would be detrimental to the sustainability of farms that rely on their composting operations for revenue or soil building/fertility as well as adaptation to climate change. Details about the proposed changes are here.  Our overall concerns with the proposed […]

Lack of access to affordable land is routinely cited by aspiring and established farmers alike as a primary challenge to entry and expansion. Since the 1940’s farmland has been steadily converted to other uses and regrown into New England forest, creating a patchwork of separate small parcels of farmland and former farmland. Many of these […]

There are at least 120 bills in the current state legislative session that address farm and fishing issues raised in the Massachusetts Local Food Action Plan. The Collaborative has been working with our Agricultural network seeking stakeholder groups’ perspectives on these bills and engaging them in advocacy on bills supported by the Plan. We have […]