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Maine Farms for the Future

Business Development & Investment Support Program

The Maine Farms for the Future Program (FFF) is a competitive grants program offering business planning assistance and implementation funds to Maine farms. FFF exists because the State of Maine recognizes that farmers are innovators who often lack the time or resources to research ideas, analyze markets and crunch all of the numbers before launching new enterprises or production systems on their farms.

The program’s goal is to help you, the farmer, work through the details to develop and implement a successful business plan.

The Maine Farms for the Future Program offers two types of grants:

• The “Phase 1” grant is an investment of public funds to help farmers research and write a business plan focused on their specific ideas for change and innovation on their farm. The grant funds enable you to “look before you leap." Phase 1 farmers use grant funds to hire private consultants, attend conferences, conduct market research, obtain special skills or training, and travel to other farms to analyze the feasibility of their ideas. Phase 1 farms are provided the technical assistance of a professional business counselor who helps them fine-tune your market research and financial analyses.

• The “Phase 2” grant is an investment of public funds to implement the project(s) described in the Phase 1 Business Plan. Phase 2 grants require a 75 percent match and are capped at $25,000. The grant requires the farm to sign an agreement to prevent non-farm development and protect the farm for seven years. There also is an opportunity to be recommended for a low-interest (2 percent) loan rate through the Agricultural Marketing Loan Fund administered by the Finance Authority of Maine. 

Phase 1 and Phase 2 farms are selected by an independent Review Panel, appointed by the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry commissioner and comprised of professionals from the agricultural sector, including bankers, farmers, policymakers, as well as a former agriculture commissioner.

For more information, please contact:

Stephanie Gilbert, FFF Program administrator, (207) 287-7520; email: stephanie.gilbert@maine.gov 

Kimbalie Lawrence, research assistant, (207) 287-3491; email: kimbalie.lawrence@maine.gov