MARBIDCO Certified Local Farm Enterprise Food Aggregation Grant Fund Program

Emma Jagoz, founder of Moon Valley Farm located in Woodsboro, MD, once wrote about her future ambition on her website: “No money, no experience, two tiny kids, a slice of borrowed land and a vision”.

The first-time farmer began her journey into growing food in 2012 after a thoughtful process of evaluating her values in prioritizing her family, eating healthy foods, and sharing with the community.

Today, she runs a 25-acre certified organic farm. Ms. Jagoz and her team grow specialty vegetables and herbs in Frederick County. When she was ready to take the farm to the next level, she applied for and received two MARBIDCO Certified Local Farm Enterprise Food Aggregation Grants.

The purpose of the Certified Local Farm Enterprise Food Aggregation Grant Program (Small-Scale Farmer Entity Project Grant) is to demonstrate how an investment of funds can help to grow and strengthen Maryland’s local food system and to create opportunities for small farmers to sell products to wholesale and institutional markets.

The grants - between $25,000 and $100,000 - are used to fund projects that help small farmers aggregate their product(s) to sell to institutional or wholesale buyers.

Applicants for the small-scale farmer-led aggregation grant must include at least four Certified Local Farm Enterprise farmers and provide at least a 20% match of private funds in the project.

Ms. Jagoz shares her experience with MARBIDCO and how its programs have helped the farm meet her vision of assuring healthy locally grown produce is available in schools and in the community:

MARBIDCO’s Certified Local Farm Enterprise Food Aggregation Grant spoke to us precisely - we are a certified organic vegetable farm who works with dozens of other farmers to run a year-round, multi-farm Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, to sell to restaurants in DC, Baltimore, Frederick, and Northern Virginia, and wanted to expand into selling wholesale to schools.

For us, branching out into wholesale made sense on a number of levels - it would help balance out our delivery margins from our home delivery of CSA boxes, and it would allow us to move more volume at once, which is needed when you scale up production, grow winter storage crops, and aggregate from a bunch of farms.

At Moon Valley Farm, we collaborate with several dozen other local regional farmers and producers to diversify our offerings in all seasons for our customers, and to help us specialize in crops that grow best on our respective soils.

In addition to the 40+ crops we grow by aggregating from other local farmers, we can offer hundreds of crops, making it easier for our customers to buy local in all seasons from one place.

We offer gourmet mushrooms, organic eggs, local fruit, grains, dried beans and even more vegetable varieties and quantities by working with other farms.

Wholesale customers require consistency in product availability and quality, and many including the school systems need to plan their menus several months in advance.

In a lot of ways, it’s easier to grow food than it is to find a timely buyer, especially for produce growers like us who work with such short shelf life on our crops.

Adding wholesale as an enterprise made sense, but that doesn’t mean it is free to start, and that’s where MARBIDCO came in to help.

We received a MARBIDCO grant in 2021 to increase our capacity to sell wholesale and got started selling to the Frederick County Public Schools (FCPS) system.

With the MARBIDCO grant, we invested in a new refrigerated delivery vehicle, a new walk-in cooler, an expandable conveyor for packing efficiency and a forklift, all to allow us to grow and aggregate more volume for these larger customers such as FCPS.

We immediately loved working with FCPS, as growing for our community’s elementary school children’s lunches is just “feel-good” in all the ways - plus my children attend FCPS schools too.

After working with the schools in the 2021-2022 school year, we learned a lot about the logistics of the local school systems and their capacities, or lack thereof, to offer fresh and healthy produce to the kids.

In Frederick County, the schools lack the staff, the coolers, cooking equipment and the kitchen space to process any vegetables or fresh produce for the kids.

This means the school system can only really buy produce that is “ready-to- eat” - they truly cannot cut or cook produce meaningfully if at all, which you can imagine greatly limits what produce they can purchase from local farms, especially considering that the school calendar excludes the easiest months to offer fresh-off-the-vine produce.

Our local schools can buy grapes and apples, cherry tomatoes, and baby carrots - but they really can’t buy things like whole watermelons that require cutting, sweet potatoes that require cooking or celery that requires washing.

This major roadblock is why we applied for a second MARBIDCO Certified Local Farm Enterprise Food Aggregation Grant in 2022, this time to invest in a processing facility and equipment to allow us to take on the next step for the schools - washing and chopping produce to sell them a “ready-to-eat” product.

We needed this investment because farms like ours are not allowed to simply wash and process produce like that without its own facility and food safety measures in place - and now we are able to meaningfully meet the need of the schools for local produce that is delivered to them in a way they can actually use.

The grant funded equipment to wash and process the produce, including a commercial food processor that can slice, dice, make fries or carrot sticks; a vacuum sealer, stainless tables and sinks for washing and staging, a reach-in cooler, and the building to host the processing facility. We can transform our large carrots into bitesized sticks, chop watermelons into chunks, cut greens into “ready-to-eat” sizes and more.

We now realize that this investment will greatly help us on the farm to decrease our food waste as well. Moon Valley Farm grows and aggregates year-round which means we grow and buy a lot of storage crops, and as you can imagine, storage crops that have dings or bruises on them simply won’t store well.

We either have to leave imperfect produce in the field or compost it from our coolers. Because of MARBIDCO’s support, we’re able to harvest and process more of that produce which will decrease our food waste and get it to the school system to feed the children!

MARBIDCO’S grant program speaks directly to the needs of farms like Moon Valley, who want to meet the needs of Maryland’s schools and institutional customers - expanding from our direct market only sales - but lacked the capital to make the investments ourselves.

MARBIDCO’s Certified Local Farm Enterprise Food Aggregation Grant Fund requirement includes partnering with additional enterprise farmers, Moon Valley Farm works with:

• Sassafras Creek Farm of Southern Maryland who grows certified organic carrots, beets, tomatoes and sweet potatoes -- the carrots have been grown for and served to the FCPS school children.

• 78 Acres of Washington County, Maryland, who grows tree fruit and vines including grapes, apples, peaches and plums that we’ve aggregated and distributed to the schools.

• Distillery Lane Ciderworks in Jefferson, Maryland, provides Pixie Crunch apples to the schools.

• Potomac Valley Organics in Frederick County to provide organic baby kale to the schools.

• Zahkradka Farm in Baltimore County, to provide rainbow carrots to the schools.

• Nick’s Organic Farm in Frederick County

• Help From Above Farm in Three Springs, PA

• Pleasant Hill Produce in Walkersville, MD

• Gorman Farms in Howard County (for certified organic strawberries),

• Chesapeake Fungi in Mount Airy, MD

• Springfield Farm in Baltimore County, MD

• Next Step Produce in Newburg, MD

• Chesapeake Queen Co in Woodsboro, MD

• Catoctin Mountain Farm in Thurmont, MD, and many more.

Wood Ingenuity Repurposing Nature’s Beauty

In 2013, an ancient White Oak on Jim Boyle’s 140-acre Queen Anne’s County farm crashed to the ground during a storm. The Boyle’s, a hard-working family who have farmed their land for five generations and more than 100-years, seized the unlikely opportunity of a fallen tree and turned it into a profitable business.

Mr. Boyle and his son, David, searched for a sawmill to cut up the massive tree but could not find a saw large enough to enable them to repurpose the oak wood into a barn. On a trip to New York state, they discovered the 67″ diameter Wood-Mizer Saw, WM-1000.

While talking with the company’s sales team, David returned to his father to discover that the older Boyle was writing a check for the enormous saw.

To meet their requirements and to fill a likely need in the community, they launched Wood Ingenuity, LLC in 2014. With the new saw – one of the largest diameter saws in the Mid-Atlantic – they salvage larger logs that would normally go to waste. That initial fallen oak is the base for a barn on the property.

Wood Ingenuity became a full-service sawmill specializing in creating live-edge slabs fashioned into custom tables, shelves, bar tops, cabinets, flooring, and mantels, just to name a few of their high-end products. They are one of a few sawmills left in the area.

The company has the capability to saw large, reclaimed trees up to 67″ in diameter. They cut, kiln dry, store and age the lumber and then custom finish the product to respond to their client’s desires.

Some local Maryland trees have stood the test of time lasting 200 to 450 years. When these giants need to come down or are falling down on their own, Wood Ingenuity comes to the aid.

Wood Ingenuity turns these fallen, damaged or dead local trees that would otherwise go to landfills or become mulch, into valuable lumber to be used in their shop and the shops of other woodworkers.

A MARBICO email blast sent in early 2023 announcing a new program available to wood fiber harvesters, processors, and manufacturers, resulted in Wood Ingenuity applying for a grant to help them increase their capacity through two new buildings.

MARBIDCO’S Wood Products Industry Equity Investment Grant Program (WPIEI) helps qualified applicants to purchase new equipment or construct facilities so that they can increase production utilizing locally sourced wood fiber, enhance commercial revenue generation, and create new jobs.

Wood Ingenuity received a $50,000 WPIEI grant in FY 2023 to help them with construction of two pole barns, one maintenance shop at 50’ x 80’ x 16’ and another, a showroom at 60’ x 100’ x 16’.

Once the showroom’s interior is completed, it will have heat and air conditioning and feature wall paneling and flooring made from their reclaimed wood. David said they will spotlight high-end custom products they create from the live-edge wood slabs.

“The grant was a help,” said David of the money received from MARBIDCO. “The demand was here, and the business took off right away,” he said.

With the expansive family farmland, they have room to grow and currently have a storage building, a drying shed, and a kiln. Once the showroom is open, they next plan to expand into online sales of slabs and other wood products.

David’s brother Mark has been a partner in the business since their father retired from farming. With David’s years of carpentry work, trees and wood working became a passion. He even has a workshop in his home.

“I am learning about the characteristics of the wood.” explains David, such as, “the ambrosia tree has bugs that leave stains - when processed they look like flames.”

Wood Ingenuity’s stock includes locally grown species such as Black Walnut, various Oaks, Cherry, Maple, Pine, and Poplar. They serve urban and rural residential, business, and forest property owners from Salisbury to Annapolis, including Queen Anne, Kent, Talbot, Caroline, Dorchester, and Anne Arundel Counties. The majority of their clients are private estates on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.

Nowadays, the timber speaks to him. “When I see a tree now,” said David. “I know what I need to do.”

MARBIDCO Helps Company Start and Expand

A little over a decade ago, Victoria, a retired career woman met Robert T. Brown Sr., a waterman, who makes his livelihood on Maryland’s waterways.

Their union became the perfect match to start a new business that has become their passion: shellfish aquaculture.

With Robert T’s knowledge of Maryland seafood industry and Victoria’s 39 years in finance in private business and with the federal government, they became the perfect team to start a new business.

Victoria was raised in Charles County. Her parents purchased a tobacco and black angus’ cattle farm. She owned a bar and grill at the age of 21 and since then, obtained two college degrees, became a world-traveler as she worked as a vice president, comptroller, financial manager, for government agencies and in private industry and created another start-up business in logistics support.

Robert T. has lived his life on the water for the past 65 years where he began soft shell crabbing at the age of seven.

In 2001, he established Shop Cove Seafood & Ice business in Coltons Point, St. Mary’s County. There he distributed ice across Southern Maryland, and caught and sold oysters, blue crab, rockfish, croaker, and other species in the waterways surrounding his property to sell to locals and commercial businesses.

The idea of a third business was a bit too much for these two entrepreneurs. The couple sold the ice business but kept their license to continue to sell ice to local fish, oyster, aquaculture, and crab businesses.

Victoria, and “Robert T.,” as she calls her husband, then created a business plan to become oyster farmers, and started Shop Cove Aquaculture, LLC.

Their aquaculture business has grown tremendously through their dedication and with the help of MARBIDCO.

Victoria originally balked at the prospect of taking loans out for the business.

Then she met Dr. Matt Parker, an aquaculture business specialist with the University of Maryland Extension whose expertise includes marine aquaculture economics, production, ecosystems, and business planning.

He told her the benefits of MARBIDCO’s programs – some even offering loan forgiveness with a satisfactory repayment record.

That was the sales pitch that sold her. “He can make anyone understand anything’ said Victoria of Matt. “He explained the loan process to me, and I started filling out the paperwork.”

Victoria and Robert T. were among the first group of recipients in MARBIDCO’s Maryland Remote Setting Aquaculture Financing Fund program in FY 2013, using the funds to purchase oyster shell and seed/larvae.

Through the Maryland Remote Setting Aquaculture Financing Fund program, an applicant must hold a nursery permit from DNR or have applied for one. In addition, all applicants must have production and business plans that demonstrate the financial feasibility of the planned aquaculture operation.

Both the Maryland Shellfish Aquaculture Financing Fund and Maryland Remote Setting Shellfish Aquaculture Financing Fund are in partnership with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and provides affordable financing to commercial watermen who want to start or expand shellfish remote setting aquaculture operations.

In the beginning the couple had acquired five aquaculture bottom leases totaling more than 80 acres located in St. Patrick’s Creek, Breton’s Bay, and St. Clements Bay in St. Mary’s County. They also had four remote setting tanks at the Colton’s Point location in St. Mary’s County.

The couple subsequently applied for and received two Maryland Shellfish Aquaculture Financing Fund loans. This program can be used to purchase substrate (e.g., oyster shell), seed (or larvae) or capital equipment.

Persons holding State submerged land or water column aquaculture leases, or those who have applied for such leases are eligible to apply. In addition, all applicants must have production and business plans that demonstrate the financial feasibility of the planned aquaculture operation.

Loan funds were used to purchase equipment including a forklift as well as seed and oyster shell.

“I would not have had such a successful enterprise without MARBIDCO. It is a wonderful program for those that want to get into the business – more people need to know about it,” said Victoria.

Their success, she said, stems from sticking with their original business plan and the support of MARBIDCO’s programs.

Today Shop Cove Aquaculture has 350 bottom leased acres, expanding into St. Mary’s Sanctuary, Canoe Creek, and others, 10 remote setting tanks, two 40-foot-plus deadrise boats, three skiffs and a barge. Since Shop Cove Aquaculture’s inception, they have produced one billion spat to harvest or sell to local and commercial companies.

The couple participate in organizations supporting watermen. Robert T. is president of the Maryland Watermen’s Association and Victoria belongs also. He is a member of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which was formed to coordinate and manage fishery resources.

She is also trying to raise money to help restore and gain available new technologies at Horn Point Oyster Hatchery (UMES), to keep it “a center of excellence,” said Victoria.

At the end of FY 2023 MARBIDCO welcomed Victoria as its newest member of the Board of Directors representing the Commercial Seafood Harvesting and Processing Industry. With all of her knowledge of commercial fishing and aquaculture in Maryland, she is a welcome addition to the board.

Maryland Vineyard/Hopyard/Orchard Planting Loan Fund

Wayne A. Cawley IV was having a very bad day back in 2020. COVID was raging, nothing was going right, and he was stranded on a farm in his broken-down truck.

What else could he do? He prayed. “God, you got me stranded, now what?” when he spied on his cell phone a for sale listing for a run-down, 38-acre farm straddling MD Route 404 in Denton.

Two days later, his wife, Kirsten sent him the very same real estate listing.

A month later, he heard a sermon about faith, he said. The vision became clear, and he and Kirsten were ready to take a leap of faith.

However, without a large downpayment for the property, they would not be able to move forward.

Wayne was familiar with MARBIDCO because his cousin had received a MARBIDCO loan to purchase his farm property.

This prompted Wayne and Kirsten to contact MARBIDCO and begin their own journey to purchase a working farm and apply for a Maryland Resource- Based Industry Financing Fund (MRBIFF) loan to help finance the down payment on the property.

MRBIFF was established by MARBIDCO to help meet the unique financing needs of Maryland farm, forestry, and seafood businesses, particularly with respect to entrepreneurship and business start-up.

This program offers affordable loans to qualified applicants for the purchase of land and capital equipment for eligible food/feed/fiber/fuel business activities.

“That is the only way you can get started and get some equity,” he said. “It really is a good program to help people get started. MARBIDCO was essential to us buying the farm with the downpayment. We had paid off all of our debt to buy a house, but in the middle of COVID and the lock down we bought this farm,” said Wayne.

“Without the MRBIFF program we would not have had the funds to buy this property,” he added.

Wayne has farming in his blood. He grew up working on family farms. He started growing produce on his own in 2014, but it was not especially lucrative. While Kirsten had no prior experience farming, today she is instrumental in marketing and running the farm market.

The property sits aside a major thourghfare in Denton. Instantly, they knew this would be an ideal place for a you-pick business and agritourism venture.

With apple trees on the farm that needed tending, they brought the orchard back to life and decided to plant strawberries for travelers to stop by and pick themselves. They also built a small farm market to get their products in front of customers.

The couple also leases an orchard in Bridgeville, DE where they grow peaches.

“We recently got approved for a vineyard, hopyard, orchard loan from MARBIDCO,” said Wayne. They plan to use the funds to expand their fruit repertoire and will add peaches, plums, blueberries, and cherries in the fall of 2023.

The major aim of the Maryland Vineyard/Hopyard/Orchard Planting Loan Fund program is to increase the acreage of viable commercial vineyards, orchards, and hopyards in Maryland. MARBIDCO provides low-cost financing to make financing both available and affordable for fruit production.

Both Wayne and Kirsten are looking toward the future to build a bigger farm market on their property.

“We would like to build a big modern farm market with a variety of fruit, vegetables, ice cream, baked goods for sale, so that travelers will pull off to make an event of it,” said Wayne.

In the meantime, they are expanding their you-pick opportunities and planting sunflowers, popcorn, and pumpkins in order to diversify their operation and keep an income stream coming in from spring to late fall.“We are striving to get more people to stop by,” said a determined Wayne.

For many decades, oysters have been a prized Chesapeake Bay seafood product featured on restaurant menus and at seafood shops, and now increasingly oysters are available at specialty grocery stores and even at some farmers’ markets.

Following important regulatory changes instituted a dozen years ago, and with some economic development support provided by State public sector agencies (including MARBIDCO)

Maryland is seeing an upsurge in both the production and demand for oysters which has helped fuel the growth of its shellfish aquaculture industry.

And looking at it from another perspective, since oysters eat the algae found in brackish estuaries that excessively thrive on too many nutrients (such as nitrogen and phosphorus), the growing number of Maryland oyster farmers are helping to improve the Bay’s water quality.

According to the University of Maryland Extension (UME), from 2012 to 2021, over 496,000 bushels of oysters have been harvested from over 7,500 acres leased through the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

However, UME’s 2020 industry report notes that the continued growth of shellfish aquaculture in Maryland faces several challenges including the availability of oyster shell, oyster larvae, environmental conditions, and the ability to secure a DNR aquaculture lease.

To help grow the industry, MARBIDCO partnered with DNR to establish the Maryland Shellfish Aquaculture Financing Fund to provide low-cost loans to oyster farming businesses like the Maryland Seafood Cooperative.

The Maryland Seafood Cooperative (MDSC) began in 2018 and is the only statewide watermen-owned cooperative in Maryland.

It produces sustainably grown shellfish from the Chesapeake Bay which it markets regionally. MDSC includes 21 members and has 97 acres of leased bottom in the Little Choptank, Edge Creek, Patuxent, and Manokin Rivers. MDSC members hail from Calvert, Charles, St. Mary’s, Anne Arundel, Dorchester, Queen Anne’s, and Talbot Counties.

MDSC is intent on helping its members generate supplemental revenue to offset the cyclical nature of the wild oyster fishery while meeting the demand for locally sourced seafood using sustainable and innovative methods.

In their goal to be self-sufficient, a challenge they faced was sourcing spat-on-shell (SOS) to fulfill the requirements of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) shellfish lease agreement and meet their own business production goals.

MDSC has a partnership with Ferry Cove Oyster Hatchery, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, built in 2021 in Sherwood (Talbot County), to utilize a portion of the hatchery’s onshore nursery for MDSC’s remote setting tanks.

Ferry Cove Oyster Hatchery is a state-of-the-art private oyster hatchery producing oyster larvae and seed for Maryland’s shellfish aquaculture industry and has the capacity to grow up to three billion larvae per year. It uses cutting edge technology to maximize efficiencies and lengthen the production season.

An example is its use of several computer control systems throughout its operation to control salinity, temperature, Ph, among others, to give it flexibility in responding to Bay’s constant changes in water quality.

Having consistent water quality in the hatchery enables it to maximize its larvae and seed production. Ferry Cove is also growing its own algae in large bioreactors which provide the food supply for the hatchery’s oysters.

In order to fund the needed remote setting equipment, MDSC reached out to MARBIDCO and applied for a loan through its Maryland Shellfish Aquaculture Financing Fund.

With this program, MARBIDCO makes affordable, subsidized financing available to commercial watermen and other entrepreneurs wishing to start or expand shellfish aquaculture operations.

MARBIDCO has financed 94 shellfish aquaculture projects in Maryland at over $5.6 million since the program began in 2011.

Loans (between $5,000 and $100,000) may be used to purchase substrate (e.g., shell), seed (or larvae) or capital equipment, and both “on-bottom” and “water column” aquaculture production projects may qualify.

The program offers loans with a below market interest rate and possible loan forgiveness for first-time borrowers of up to 40%.

MDSC used the loan funds to purchase and install four remote setting tanks and tank heaters located at

Ferry Cove Hatchery property that will help supply oysters to the Bay-bottom leases owned by the Cooperative.

MDSC purchases oyster larvae from local hatcheries and has acquired some oyster shell needed to produce spat-on-shell in its remote setting tanks. The remote setting production has been in operation for a year and the has produced and shipped spat on shell to its leases in the Little Choptank River, and the Patuxent River

“It has been huge for us,” said Kelly Barnes, MDSC’s business manager. “The funding gives us the ability to do more and become self-sufficient.”

The fiberglass remote setting tanks are key to the Cooperative’s growth. The MDSC’s four tanks should produce up to five million baby oysters.

“We want to get more oysters on the bottom,” she added.

In addition to the economic benefit of oysters, they are regarded as Chesapeake Bay’s most important filter feeder (of algae) and are thus considered to be a “keystone species”.

After each set, the tanks are washed out and aged oyster shells are cleaned in the shell washer and put into round bags.

Locally constructed screened bags holding the clean shells are hooked to a crane and loaded into the tanks for the next set.

MDSC is currently awaiting its first crop of planted oysters to be ready for harvest, which will take three to four years to mature before being sold to wholesalers, restaurants, or other retailers.

“We wouldn’t have been able to do this without MARBIDCO,” said Barnes.

And, of course, with the support of the Ferry Cove Hatchery too helping to bring additional vitality to the oyster farming industry in Maryland.

MARBIDCO supports growth of Co-op and Port of Leonardtown Winery

The Southern Maryland Wine Growers Cooperative (SMWGC) was formed in 2007 to become a local market for vineyards to sell their wine grapes after the region transitioned away from tobacco production.

MARBIDCO was there at the start with the first of many financial resources that would help the Cooperative grow over the years - including the Maryland Farm and Producer Viability Program, a financial tool that’s goal was to increase start-up rates of agricultural operations and resource-based businesses.

Partnering with St. Mary’s County and Leonardtown, interested farmers and others with a passion for wine set in motion a plan to ensure the success of wine grape growing in Southern Maryland. Grapes for wine hadn’t been grown in the area since the time of Governor Charles Calvert in the 1600s The SMWGC was the first agricultural cooperative winery in Maryland leading the way for viticulture and future wineries to be established.

The potential for the emerging wine industry to positively affect agriculture and tourism in Southern Maryland was recognized and supported by the State, and the local governments, and farmers.

Farmers also recognized the corporate structure of a cooperative provides a means to share in the profitability of the value-added products that a winery creates.

In 2009, with a grant from St. Mary’s County Government Department of Economic Development to the Town of Leonardtown, SMWGC entered into a lease agreement with the Town of Leonardtown to repurpose the former State Highway Administration building into a winery, making it the first commercial winery in St. Mary’s County. The winery is located at the intersection of Maryland Route 5 and Newtown Neck Road in Leonardtown.

The Port of Leonardtown Winery was created by SMWGC and opened for wine production for the grape harvest of 2009. The winery tasting room opened for retail and wholesale wine sales in May 2010.

The Port of Leonardtown Winery prides itself on purchasing locally grown Maryland wine grapes and producing award winning Maryland wines.

The cooperative started with 16 participating grape growers. Currently the winery has 12 cooperative vineyards from St Mary’s, Calvert, and Charles counties.

Don’t go to Napa Valley for Extraordinary Wine, it’s Right Here at Home

MARBIDCO supports growth of Co-op and Port of Leonardtown Winery

T. Pat Isles set the standard as a Winemaker and for the first six years created outstanding wines that not only won awards but more importantly helped establish a strong repeat customer base.

Beginning in 2016, Winemaker Lauren Zimmerman has raised the bar. The Port of Leonardtown is still winning awards and proving exceptionally high-quality wine can be grown and made in Maryland.

Since opening in 2010, the Co-op has won more than 150 awards including multiple Best in Class awards and many international medals. Not once but twice, The Port of Leonardtown Winery had the honor of being awarded “Best in Show” (in 2018 and 2021) and won the Maryland Governors Cup Wine Competition.

Currently, Winery Manager Michael Hughes and his staff keep the customers coming back for more.

Through continued reinvestment, each year wine production increases to meet customer demand and every year something new is added to the product list. Along the way, MARBIDCO was there with financing through grants and loans to assure the Co-op and the winery’s success.

Following the first Maryland Farm and Producer Viability grant in 2007, the Cooperative applied for a Local Government Ag/RBI Project Cost Share Grant in 2009.

Under this program, a local or regional economic development office applies to MARBIDCO for grant funds to match a grant it is providing to an agricultural enterprise. The funds being utilized by the governmental entity must be own-source (rather than simply pass- through) funds.

Also in 2009, they were approved for an equity-converting-to-debt financing program designed by MARBIDCO to aid agricultural cooperatives.

Lastly, in 2011, the Co-Op applied for and received a $10,000 Maryland Value-Added Producer Grant (Capital Assets Option) that helped them create a new tasting room.

This program was designed to encourage farms and other rural businesses that wanted to expand or diversify their operations through value added processing to purchase equipment or construct facilities.

Through these grant and loan programs, MARBIDCO has supported the growth and success of SMWGC and Port of Leonardtown Winery.

“With MARBIDCO’s support in a “newer” venture, not only for the State of Maryland, but for the agricultural community of Southern Maryland, we have become an award-winning winery and an example of the agricultural community working together for a common goal,” said Michael

Hughes, general manager at the winery. “Without MARBIDCO believing in, and financially assisting us, we wouldn’t be the thriving winery we are today.”

These SMWGC vineyards offer a vast supply of varietals for the winery to use to create their various wines:

• Forrest Hall Farm Vineyard - St. Mary’s County. Grows Cayuga, Chambourcin, Cabernet Franc, and Vidal Blanc.

• Gossett Farm - Calvert County. Grows Chambourcin.

• Gray Wolf Vineyard - St. Mary’s County. Grows Traminette, Vidal Blanc

• Lawton Hall Vineyard - St. Mary’s County. Grows Chambourcin and Vidal Blanc.

• Mulberry Hill Farm - Calvert County. Grows Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Vidal Blanc, Chambourcin, Charnel, and Norton.

• St Michaels Manor - St. Mary’s County. Growing Chancellor, De Chaunac, Vidal Blanc, and Villard.

• Stonemur Vineyard - Charles County. Grows Cabernet Franc, Vidal Blanc, Seyval Blanc, Barbera, Lemberger, and Vanessa.

• Summerseat Farm - St. Mary’s County. Grows Barbera, Chambourcin, Cabernet Franc, Dolcetto, Malvasia Bianca, Nebbiolo, Petit Sirah, Petit Verdot, Sangiovese, Vidal Blanc, Viognier and Albarino.

• Tranquility Vineyard - Calvert County. Grows Cayuga, Chardonnay, and Chambourcin.

• Port of Leonardtown Winery - St. Mary’s County, Arandell

MARBIDCO’s First Loan: A Look Back & Into the Future of Black Ankle Vineyards

In celebration of MARBIDCO’s 15th anniversary, we look back at our first loan recipient in 2007, their history, and where they are today.

Black Ankle Vineyards was conceived by two young profession­als who walked away from lucrative consulting careers to follow their dream – to create a world-class vine­yard and winery in Maryland.

Sarah O’Herron and Ed Boyce were serious about their new venture, and it took several years to bring their vision to fruition. Having no winemaking experience, they traveled to renowned wine regions from Chile to France to New Zealand learning the art of winemaking.

With their newfound knowl­edge, they searched for the perfect Maryland soil and old-world har­vestable grapes to grow and then researched how to build a sustain­able eco-friendly complex utilizing nature’s yield from the piece of earth they hoped to purchase.

That ideal 146-acre property was discovered in 2002 in the rolling, rocky terrain of Maryland’s Piedmont area in Mount Airy, Frederick County: perfect for grape growing with good drainage and a temperate climate on a hilly landscape.

“Not the kind of soil most farmers are looking for,” joked O’Herron. Working the land and planting their initial 22 acres with a dozen or so grape varietals in 2003-2004 took time, but by 2006 the couple had their first harvest. Boyce and O’Herron now needed wine-making equipment and a tasting-sales facility to share their blended Bordeaux-and Burgun­dy-style wines with the public.

Enter MARBIDCO

O’Herron and Boyce met with a loan officer at the local Mid-Atlantic Farm Credit who introduced them to the State’s newly formed qua­si-public financial institution offer­ing low-interest loans to agri-busi­nesses, called the Maryland Agricultural and Resource-Based Industry Development Corporation (MARBIDCO).

MARBIDCO had just opened its Maryland Resource Based Industry Financing Fund or “MRBIFF” program and the couple obtained the corporation’s very first loan. MARBIDCO’s loan funds, in addition to Mid-Atlantic Farm Credit, allowed the couple to build a sustainable straw-built facility made from straw, wood, stone, and clay retrieved on their land.

The distinctive energy-effi­cient building with solar panels and a green (vegetation) roof opened in 2008.

“In this industry, it is such a huge outlay of begin­ning capital, and being able to get a low-cost loan with a super low-interest rate and great terms was wonderful,” said O’Herron. “MARBIDCO was a big help to get us going to construct our tasting room.”

MRBIFF has since become the most popular loan in MARBID­CO’s portfolio of financial pro­grams.

With the help of a commer­cial lender, qualified applicants can receive loan amounts, up to $300,000 for the acquisition of equipment and fixed assets, up to $600,000 for real estate purchases, and $900,000 for large-scale food/fiber processing projects.

Black Ankle Vineyards has also received three small grants from MARBIDCO over the years.

Growing a Vineyard

The rocky low-fertility soil in the Piedmont region where Black Ankle Vineyards is located makes for superior growing conditions producing excellent fruit, according to O’Herron. Since grapevine roots must penetrate deep into the earth to find water and nutrients, hormon­al triggers in the plant forcing it to channel its energy into producing complex, concentrated fruit.

All Black Ankle grapes are grown and harvested on the prop­erty. Among the varietals planted and used for crafting their blends are Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot, Pinot Noir, Albariño, Chardonnay, Grüner Veltliner, Mus­cat, and Viognier.

O’Herron said a quality product is imperative and they are dedicated to producing the best possible wines that some say compare favorably with the finest Europe has to offer.

Each of their 200,000 grape vines is hand-touched seven to 10 times a year to ensure they are healthy and cultivate optimal fruit.

For their efforts, Black Ankle Vineyards has won “Best in Show” at four Maryland Governor’s Cup Competitions and was recog­nized in 2014 by the Washington Post as one of two Maryland win­eries that are “changing the way wines are made in Maryland.” The winery’s picturesque setting is reminiscent of a Tuscan winery or Spanish villa say its cus­tomers “The experience is wonder­ful, it’s like I am on vacation or in Italy,” recalled O’Herron of patrons comments.

“It’s a great break from life. We are an hour from Baltimore and Washington D.C. and only about 20 minutes from Frederick City. It’s good to get out, get a taste of nature.” Black Ankle has Friday and weekend events with live music and food trucks. It operates as a wedding venue and offers private tasting parties, wine cruises, curated wine experiences, a wine club, and subscription service, plus an ask-the-winemaker online format “happy hour”, found on YouTube.

Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow

Besides the tasting-sales building and sprawling patios, the property has a bank barn built in the 1800s (updated in the 1950s), a farm­house circa 1860s-70s, a ferment­ing building housing steel wine­making tanks, a wine aging facility with hundreds of oak barrels and a new storage-shipping facility.

The vines are expertly cared for by its seasonal team of 25, H2-A temporary agricultural workers from Mexico.

Other staff members include vineyard operations, and general managers, a director of marketing, a DTC (direct to consumer) manager, wholesale accounts, education/communica­tions, hospitality managers, special events and weddings coordinator, 50 tasting room associates, four wine club contacts, with O’Herron and Boyce as the proprietors and winemakers.

They recently purchased two farms in Montgomery County, one of which will be exclusively vineyards and the other a separate property that will feature a vine­yard/winery dubbed “Live Edge Vineyards” in Clarksburg, slated for 2026.

A third grape-growing prop­erty in Carroll County, allows the business to expand even further. With these three properties, they added 430 acres, totaling about 600 combined acres on the three farms.

Getting On Board

O’Herron was asked to join MARBIDCO’s Board of Directors. She has served since 2011, taking a break in 2016 and 2017, and is serving currently.

“I enjoy being on the Board and bringing people into the MARBDICO family and getting them growing. A little support makes a substantial difference,” she said. “It fills a need and is a good role for the State.”

Living the Dream via the SANG program; First Recipients of Small Acreage Next Gen Program Finding Success

Michael and Lauren Adams (above photo), a young couple living in Keymar, Frederick County, had a dream. They wished to own a farm, make and sell hay, and buy and sell livestock. Both had experience in farming, and both wanted to purchase their own land. Unfortunately, they were finding it difficult to finance their desire to one day become self-sufficient.

Enter SANG

Until they discovered the Small-Acreage Next Generation Farmland Acquisition Program or "SANG” offered by MARBIDCO.The Adams became the very first recipients of SANG, an offshoot of the Next Generation

Farmland Acquisition Program, and part of MARBIDCO’s Rural Land Preservation Facilitation Programs

protecting Maryland’s working farms.

“The fact that there is a program like this is amazing,” said Michael Adams. “We would not have been able to buy our property without it,” added Lauren Adams.

“It has always been our dream to have land and some animals and be more self-sufficient,” said Michael.

SANG helps qualified young or beginning farmers who may have trouble entering the agricultural profession because of relatively high farmland costs and a lack of access to adequate financial capital to purchase smaller farmland properties between 10 and 49 acres in size.

The Small Acreage Next Gen Program is a farmland conservation easement option purchase program designed to facilitate the transfer of farmland to a new generation of farmers and help preserve the agricultural land from future development.

By using the SANG Program, MARBIDCO can provide 40% to 60% of the Fair Market Value (land only) in exchange for a permanent agricultural conservation easement. The farmer can use that money as a down payment to purchase the farmland.

Before applying, the Adams had to work with the county to determine if the property was eligible for SANG.

“The [SANG] application was easy, and all went smoothly,” Michael explained, “but the wait was stressful. There were so many hands involved; thankfully the seller was very patient.”

Farming Backgrounds

Lauren and Michael have interesting backgrounds for beginning farmers. Lauren grew up in Westminster, Carroll County, and was a 4-H member. Her grandfather has a 100-acre farm in New Windsor, Carroll County with pigs and lambs that she once cared for.

As an adult, she became a registered nurse working in hospitals until they purchased the Keymar

property. Today she is a home care nurse traveling around Frederick County, then comes home to help at their farm.

For 10 years, Michael was a rodeo contestant traveling up and down the east coast and out west in Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, and Missouri. He became a farrier, shoeing horses and working at a 1,700-acre ranch in New Jersey.

Later he moved to Maryland from Chester County, Pennsylvania to work for J Bar W Ranch in Johnsville, Frederick County. He also baled hay on the ranches.

Michael currently works as a farrier in Carroll and Frederick counties until about noon each day when he returns to work the farm.

Living the Dream

The couple moved into their 1700s home on the property and spent much of their time renovating and bringing it up to date.

Outside the home, they planted twenty acres of hay and are currently selling it. They have sold hay bales for two summers. The couple first began baling hay into squares, but quickly changed to hay rolls.

“We may make a little less money, but it [a hay roll] is so much easier for just the two of us,” said Michael. “I deal with a lot of horse people, and they are moving to round bales.” “And,” joked Lauren, "it’s always one hundred degrees when we do it.”

They took down the unsalvageable barn and now have space for 4-board fencing around a 50x50 foot plot to one day hold livestock. Michael and his siblings built a new barn (above photo) in May 2022 that holds processed hay and farm equipment. An old smokehouse and a large shed, home to Michael’s tools and equipment, are also on the property.

Animal Farm

The Adams recently ordered fifty meat chickens. “We will see how that goes,” said Michael. They plan to add 100-150 more chickens in the future. “They won’t go to waste, we both have big families,” said Lauren.

With 20 acres already used for hay, the additional five acres are on hold until they install fencing and start purchasing steer. To acquire cattle, Michael is collaborating with a customer who may barter hay for a cow or steer.

“He is really friendly and is willing to help,” said Michael. The couple has accomplished much in a year since settling on their dream property. "There is no way we could have done it without the program,” said Lauren of the SANG opportunity

Passion for Healthy Living Grows into Superfood Mushroom Farm; MARBIDCO Maryland Urban Agricultural Commercial Lending Incentive Grant Award Enables Expansion of New Industry

Elizabeth Robinson and Cory Moore (above photo) came to farming with divergent backgrounds. She was an accountant for Marriott International and he was a fitness businessperson for 25 years, opening Golds Gyms for many of those years. What brought them together into the health food industry was each suffered from painful physical conditions. At one point in her career, Robinson faced stomach issues so severe she had to go on disability at her job. Moore had slipped and fell on ice and suffered a back injury.

Robinson began experimenting with herbs and supplements that would help her feel better, eschewing pharmaceuticals she said made her feel worse. She started mixing ingredients to make a hemp balm and hemp sublingual oil. After various tries, she found the magic recipe that helped both she and Moore recover from their ailments.

“It transformed my life,” said Robinson. “The Gift” wellness products were born from their research and passion for healthy living.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, they decided to diversify and try an indoor crop – gourmet mushrooms. The global mushroom market size valued at USD $50.3 billion in 2021, is expected to expand at an annual growth rate of 9.7% from 2022 to 2030. After researching how to grow the fungi, Robinson and Moore opened The Garden International. “The two companies mesh together,” said Robinson. “Everything is plant-based.” The two distinct products are manufactured in separate areas of their suite in Beltsville, Prince Georges County, MD.

Mushroom Diversity

Although considered a vegetable, mushrooms are neither a plant nor an animal. They are a type of fungus. Mushrooms are deemed a superfood due to their nutritional contents and are a rich, low-calorie source of fiber, protein, and antioxidants.

The Garden International’s gourmet mushrooms are not your common grocery store white buttons or portobellos. The mushroom assortment they grow are peculiar and colorful, full of flavor with different textures you will not find at chain food markets.

They hand deliver boxes of individual or mixed mushrooms to buyers in Maryland, DC, and northern Virginia and ship mushrooms across the country.

The mushrooms that customers will find in the variety box are pink oyster, blue oyster, golden oyster, lion’s mane, shiitake, black Mushrooms ready for harvesting king, king trumpet, chestnut, cioppino, maitake, beech, and more.

Fresh mushroom delivery can be one or more types of mushrooms or a variety box that includes two to four varieties depending on size. With this option, mushroom types vary based on the current harvest. In a grow-your-own mushroom kit, they offer the hairy Lions Maine and the brightly colored Blue, Golden, and Pink Oysters.

The Garden International sells wholesale to local restaurants and retail at farmers’ markets and direct to consumers. “There is nothing fresher than hand delivery,” said Moore. Retail box of mixed mushrooms incubation tent where the mycelium grows. Once the bags are fully colonized with mycelium, they are moved to the fruiting tents for “fruitification” When fructification begins, the mushrooms are placed onto shelves in fruiting tents and the various mushrooms grow larger as they wait to be harvested at just the right time.

“The mushrooms each have different timing,” explained Robinson. “They can take from 14 days up to six months from inoculation to harvest. We rotate them through, and the tents are emptied and cleaned frequently.”

Growing the Business

Once the business began to grow, The Garden International was ready to purchase equipment and expand to mail orders. They applied to MARBIDCO’s Maryland Urban Agricultural Commercial Lending Incentive Grant program.

The program is designed to meet the financing needs of urban farmers by providing an incentive for them to seek commercial lenders f financing for the development or expansion of their agricultural enterprises.

Their $10,000 grant award, leveraging a loan from the United States Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency for $50,000, was used to help them purchase a filtration system, boxes for shipping mushrooms, shipping costs, substrate, mushroom bags, a variety of mushroom spawn, which is the living fungal culture, called mycelium, grown onto a substrate providing the backbone to a mushroom growing operation. The substrate is the equivalent of “seeds” for a mushroom farm, but unlike seeds, the spawn is grown from selected genetics and cloned for consistent production of a particular mushroom.

“Maryland has some of the best programs in the country for agriculture, even though we are not often thought of as an agricultural state,” said Robinson.

“MARBIDCO has great programs that go hand in hand with commercial lending. Grants are good for beginning farmers as it gives you time to learn and improve. You may have to pivot at some point in your business and having the funding helps with making changes when getting started.”

Farming the Product

The shop is kept at a cool 62 degrees for optimal growing and houses five black tents with string lighting and shelving that facilitate each stage of mushroom growth.

First, the substrate is rehydrated and put into five-pound bags and then five to six bags are run through a pressure sterilizer. The mushroom spawn and mycelium are mixed in the sterilizer tent. Next, the mixture goes into the incubation tent where the mycelium grows. Once the bags are fully colonized with mycelium, they are moved to the fruiting tents for “fruitification” When fructification begins, the mushrooms are placed onto shelves in fruiting tents and the various mushrooms grow larger as they wait to be harvested at just the right time.

“The mushrooms each have different timing,” explained Robinson. “They can take from 14 days up to six months from inoculation to harvest. We rotate them through, and the tents are emptied and cleaned frequently.”

Mushroom Offshoots

Besides owning two health-related businesses, Robinson, and Moore work with Prince Georges County teachers at elementary schools where they supply kits for students to grow their own mushrooms.

Other projects include working on a curriculum for fourth to sixth-graders that will teach STEAM, healthy eating, environmental issues, and how to grow mushrooms.

They are also raising funds for a “Mushroom Learning Campus” slated to open in 2023 – a place for Mycology, discovery, workforce development, a commercial kitchen, and a connection with nature, states their website.

“We have old school respect with a new approach,” said Moore about respecting the earth, using modern equipment, and sharing their knowledge with other business owners.

“We need more urban farmers. We should not be getting our vegetables from thousands of miles away. We need to be harmonizing with local businesses.”

“We thank the MARBIDCO grants that helped us and other up-and-coming entrepreneurial spirits,” he added.

Milburn Orchards Inc. is a family farm located in Elkton, in Cecil County. It is known for its you-pick produce, apple cider donuts, and family-friendly atmosphere. Fifth-generation farmer Stephen Milburn is planning to take apples from the family operation and turn them into a value-added product, hard cider, creating a new business venture.

“We plan to take apples that would have been sold for next to nothing, ferment them into hard cider and we should make a good return,” said Milburn. “We will do the production and sell directly to the consumer.”

In preparation for this project, Milburn applied to MARBIDCO’s Maryland Value-Added Producer Grant – Capital Assets Option (MVAPG-CAO program). It provides grants between $2,500 and $10,000. Applicants apply once per year and grants are awarded on a competitive basis for value-added processing capital asset projects.

Milburn applied to the program to help reduce the costs associated with acquiring the necessary equipment to make hard apple cider. Eligible project costs included a chiller and a 500-gallon tank. Other equipment he acquired included two different types of fermenters and mills.

“Working with MARBIDCO was really great. Dan [Sweeney] was our primary contact,” said Milburn. “He was very responsive and guided us through the whole process very well. It felt like I was talking to a friend half the time.”

The farm is in a great location to take advantage of markets from Delaware and Pennsylvania, as well as Maryland. The cidery will be located in close proximity to the farm and Milburn plans to build a structure for production and a tasting room. While Milburn Orchards is a family-friendly operation, Milburn hopes that the new hard cider venture will expand his market by attracting adults.

“Fewer and fewer people have a direct connection to agriculture,” said Milburn. “There is still an American desire to have a connection to farming, and now sometimes the only option is to visit a farm.”

The farm was founded in 1902 and is over 300 acres in size today. It is open from June through December and features you-pick apples, nectarines, grapes, cherries, raspberries, and blueberries.

The farm has a “backyard” section with activities for kids and families and you-pick orchards where groups can purchase a container to fill with produce. The farm has 22 full-time employees.

.While the farm used to be diversified, it transitioned to focusing on tree fruit and wholesale in the 1930s and 1940s. By the 1980s the family realized they needed to diversify again as wholesale markets were challenging for small farms to compete in. They started by offering hayrides, and their old packing house gradually changed into their farmer’s market.

“We’ve been adding on, changing, diversifying, and growing for a long time,” said Milburn. “We’re always looking for other opportunities for small manufacturing processes. Taking excess fruit and turning it into something people will appreciate.”

Prior to the pandemic, the Maryland forestry industry was facing challenges, having been greatly impacted by the closure of the Luke Paper Mill in Western Maryland in 2019. The pandemic further disrupted supply chains, affecting both the supply and demand side of the market for the industry. One company impacted was Eastern Shore Forest Products inc. (ESFP), with the subsidiary company Animal Comfort Group LLC (ACG). The company was founded 42 years ago in 1980 by Tom Johnson, (left) and is located in Salisbury, Maryland.

The businesses’ primary products include animal bedding and fuel pellets for energy, both of which are distributed nationwide. When the Covid-19 pandemic started, Johnson said the company’s primary concern was keeping their employees healthy, dealing with constant exposures, quarantines, and on-the-job risks. The company also had to find ways to increase productivity to meet the sudden rise in demand for animal bedding. The operation was already operating 24 hours a day.

“Our products have sold more since the pandemic,” said Johnson. “More small and residential farms have sprung up as people are moving away from the city… To meet the demand, we had to squeeze more out of machinery and have longer hours. It was a struggle for us…. I am blessed with good hardworking people.”

To help meet the growing demand for these products, Johnson planned to expand his business to include a pellet operation with a piece of equipment called a micro-chipper, which could make pellets both for energy and animal bedding. The micro-chipper is an expensive investment, costing $800,000.

Fortunately, it was at this time that he heard about MARBIDCO’s Maryland Wood Products Industry Equity Incentive Relief Fund Grant. The grant is designed to provide stimulus for forest products-related businesses to grow their business through innovation, increased production, and the development of new market opportunities. Johnson applied to the program and received a grant of $90,000 to be used towards the purchase of the micro-chipper.

“MARBIDCO helped fund a chipper to produce a micro-chip to make more pellets,” said Johnson. “The grant was valuable and helpful in a time where we are struggling to meet the orders… It gave us a product that we really needed, got our production up and more volume to our plants.”

The company has processing plants located in several states, including Maryland, Delaware, Oklahoma, and Texas. Most of their products are distributed to the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, with the primary products sold in Maryland going to local poultry farms and to Tractor Supply Company stores.

Their energy chips are used by the Eastern Shore Cogeneration Facility located on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.

Johnson first started cutting firewood off his family’s property when he was 15 years old and “trying to make a buck.” Eventually, his business evolved into creating animal bedding and a variety of wood products.

Currently, it employs 240 people. ESFP’s business model includes going to landowners and working with them on harvesting wood off their property and then bringing the lumber in to be processed in their facilities. Photo: Maryland Forest Association.

Lavette and Warren Blue have owned and operated the Greener Garden Urban Farm, located in Baltimore City, for the last 35 years. Together they run the farm, sell produce, and teach good farming practices. When the Covid-19 pandemic initially hit, at first their product sales were just consistent.

However, after a few months, they began to experience a large drop in sales. Regular customers and healthcare workers that had continued to call the farm to place orders and pick-up eventually stopped. This was coupled with bad weather that resulted in a decrease in crop production. And in the spring of 2021, Lavette contracted the coronavirus.

Even after being discharged from the hospital, she continued to have health challenges for months, and could only work on the farm a few hours a day before needing a break. This also prevented the farm from participating in the Druid Hill Farmers Market as they had before.

It was during the spring of 2021 that the Blues learned about MARBIDCO’s Urban Farmer Relief Grant Program, which provides grants of $500 to urban farmers to assist with a portion of the costs associated with the urban commercial production of locally grown food products.

“MARBIDCO has been helpful, telling us things, sending us information, trying to keep us up-to-date on what is happening. If we have questions, we can always ask and get an answer,” said Lavette. “The grant helped us through this pandemic because there was no money coming in.”

The Blues applied for the grant and were able to use the funds to pay for a weed torch burner, which removes weeds efficiently by burning them. The remaining funds were used to purchase a custom piece of equipment designed to cut and harvest lettuce out of raised beds.

Lavette and Warren were appreciative that a program that targeted urban farmers was made available. Being an urban farmer has its own unique issues compared to rural farming, and urban farmers do not always qualify for the programs that other farmers might be eligible for.

The farm produces a wide variety of crops, from tomatoes to herbs, with their most popular products being collards, scallions, lettuce, spinach, and carrots. Volunteers from several groups work on the farm, including from the Farm Alliance of Baltimore. Lavette also takes on interns and teaches them hands-on in the field.

On the farm, they have nine hoop houses on their one-acre property. Depending on the year, they sell their products at both the Waverly Farmers Market and the Druid Hill Farmers Market. Lavette is known as the “herb lady,” at the farmers’ markets for her fresh herbs.

“I hope for an end to Covid, to get back to normal,” said Lavette. “The city needs farmers, small farmers… We would like to make more money, but it’s more a way of life. We would like to make a profit and have it been easier to work with the city.”

For many farms, the Covid-19 Pandemic caused disruptions and changes to their operations. Henry Oakley and his family at Venture Manor Farms in Wicomico County, lost a major revenue source when they were unable to host school field trips. This was compounded by the difficulty in finding seasonal labor during the spring produce harvest season. The unexpected turn of events led them to MARBIDCO’s Pandemic Adjustment Equipment Grant Fund.

In a normal year, the farm hosts several school tours. However, since schools were shut down in the spring, field trips and other group tours to their farm were canceled. This resulted in significant financial loss. The farm also grows and sells a variety of crops and produce, including corn, soybeans, strawberries, squash, lima beans, and peppers. During the harvesting season, Oakley normally would hire 12 to 15 seasonal workers to pick produce. However, this past year the coronavirus caused the community of workers he would normally hire to fall ill. As a result, Oakley and his three family members picked six acres of strawberry fields by themselves. It was during this time that Oakley heard about MARBIDCO’s Pandemic Adjustment Equipment Grant Fund program.

“MARBIDCO was on top of answering our questions very quickly, within a day,” said Oakley. “If I were getting a loan from a bank or farm credit I’d have been at their office. To do everything by email back and forth through the whole process worked out pretty good.”

With the PAEGF grant, Venture Manor Farms was able to acquire two machine crop pickers as well as a sawmill log cutter for a separate farm enterprise. The crop pickers allow an individual to pick strawberries and weed the plant beds more efficiently, helping the family work through labor shortages. With the new sawmill, Oakley plans to cut timber on his farm into custom lumber cuts or prefab building kits. These then can be sold to customers who want to build their own homes or sheds.

The farm has just under 200 acres of timber. Oakley plans to selectively cut the right-sized trees on the sawmill and make “D-logs.” He then will cut the logs so that they can interlock with one another. He plans to have a variety of kit sizes available for customers to choose from when building their structures.

Oakley plans to launch a website to promote prefab kits and custom cutting services. The farm also manages three full-service markets where they sell produce, Christmas trees, bedding plants, and home décor. Looking to the future, Oakley’s son Jacob plans to continue the farming operation.

“I just thank you all, thank Dan [Sweeney] for his help and all the other people along the way,” said Oakley. “I appreciate the opportunity; you’ve all been good to work with.”

The COVID-19 Pandemic has led many consumers to seek local farm products. For Indhu Balasubramaniam, this meant a spike in interest in her Montgomery County farm Amaranth Acres and an increase in demand for her produce and her community-supported agriculture (CSA) membership program. When she heard about MARBIDCO’s Pandemic Adjustment Equipment Grant Fund (PAEGF) in June 2020, she knew it would help her adjust her operations to meet the influx of new customers and help her remain economically sustainable now and in the future.

“This year, with the number of new people asking for vegetables and asking to be members, I thought okay, now is the time. And this grant came at the right time,” said Balasubramaniam. “It has been very easy working with MARBIDCO.”

Balasubramaniam started her farm enterprise in 2015. When she could not find any locally grown or organic ethnic vegetables in the Germantown area, she decided to search for land where she could grow her own produce and animals. Since then her farm has expanded from selling only retail vegetables to include selling goat meat and having its own CSA program comprised of vegetables and eggs. Produce grown on her farm includes bitter gourd, tomatoes, okra, bell peppers, ridge gourd or luffa, purple-eyed peas, and dragon tongue beans, among other varieties.

With the PAEGF grant, Balasubramaniam acquired funds that enabled her to purchase a freezer, refrigerator, a building structure, and the infrastructure to facilitate a drip irrigation system. The new building will house the refrigeration and freezer units, serve as a space for her to create CSA members’ weekly bags of produce and eggs, and store the produce she sells through a retail market. The grant also allowed them to significantly improve their irrigation system.

Currently, Amaranth Acres has 28 members in its CSA program. With the additional equipment purchased using the PAEGF grant, Balasubramaniam believes she can significantly expand her vegetable production, increase the CSA membership to between 50 and 60 members, and sell more produce at retail.

“I think even with it [the pandemic] gone, this will have a positive impact that continues. Even the retail customers, despite it being a little more expensive than for CSA members, to keep coming back. I think we need to improve local food systems,” said Balasubramaniam.

During the week, Balasubramaniam works full-time as a software engineer, but in the spring and summer, she works from 6:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. on the land. After her workday, she resumes her farm work from about 5:30 p.m. to dusk. Her husband and children also help on the farm, and she has several volunteers who come on the weekends to help with the harvest.

“Initially I thought it would be a community farm, so more people would benefit and get to enjoy it the same way I do. The pandemic accelerated this, with new volunteers coming in,” said Balasubramaniam. “Working the land gives me a satisfaction that I never found in my software job, and I’d like to expand that feeling to more people.”

Tal Petty started Hollywood Oysters in 2010, anticipating that it would be his “retirement plan.” The 20-acre aquaculture operation is located on the Patuxent River near his family’s farm in St. Mary’s County. He started the business after learning about a small income tax credit program for growing oysters offered by the State of Maryland, and later acquiring a shellfish aquaculture lease from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Petty’s business has grown from him selling a few oysters to his friends to where he now sells his product to national distributors. During this time, he has turned to MARBIDCO as a resource to help him finance this expansion. In the past, he has used MARBIDCO’s Shellfish Aquaculture Financing Fund program to acquire seed (oyster larvae) and a variety of equipment, including oyster- grow cages, harvesting equipment, dock extension, and a refrigeration unit.

“I’ve worked with MARBIDCO for ten years, and I’ve seen MARBIDCO mature and grow as well,” said Petty. “And it’s always been a positive experience. They’re flexible and helpful.”

At the time the pandemic hit Maryland, he had plans in place to update the processing capacity of his farm operation. Those plans were put on hold when the pandemic resulted in the closure of restaurants and a severe loss of sales.

With nonessential businesses shut down, he was forced to lay off his crew and close his business for two months. Hoping to expand his market when his business reopened, he applied to MARBIDCO’s Pandemic Adjustment Equipment Grant Fund to purchase a salination system that would allow him to create a value-added product. With this new piece of equipment, Petty will be able to offer oysters with a saltier taste, expanding the mix of oyster varieties he sells.

“We [produce] a sweet oyster here…. We have a clay substrate and a hard, sandy bottom, a perfect bottom for oysters,” said Petty. “A lot of people like a saltier oyster. So, it gives us the flexibility to sell both a sweet and salty oyster.”

The company’s most popular product is called “Sweet Jesus” oysters.

When harvesting, the oyster cages are brought in and the oysters are sorted based on size. Market-size oysters are sent to the packing house. With the new piece of equipment, some of the collected oysters would be placed in the salinity system either overnight or for several days. This process would give the oysters time to absorb the salt from within the system, adding a briny flavor to the oysters before they are shipped to market.

Petty’s hope for the future is to continue running his oyster farm profitably with his 10 employees and follow up on any new opportunities for operational innovation as the market and scientific research evolve.

Henry Spies V always knew he wanted to farm full-time after growing up on his family’s farm and raising 4-H livestock. While in college (at the University of Maryland), and with help from his brother Austin Spies, he started Marsh Creek Cattle & Company, located in Caroline County. They raise beef cattle, pigs, and have recently expanded into poultry. When the pandemic started, Marsh Creek Cattle experienced a surge of interest from new customers seeking to purchase their products.

“We had a lot of people looking towards us as a food source, especially when grocery stores ran out,” said Spies. People came to realize some of the vulnerabilities in the food supply system.

Additional cold storage would be needed by Spies to meet this new market demand. It was while he was searching for financing opportunities to help the business grow that he came across MARBIDCO’s Pandemic Adjustment Equipment Grant Fund.

“The grant was exactly what we needed; it came in at a perfect time,” said Spies. With the grant, he was able to purchase a walk-in freezer, as well as build the infrastructure to support it. Prior to owning the freezer, he and his brother could only sell butchered cattle that had been sold in advance, either as whole, half or quarters. Immediately after butchering, they would have to deliver these orders. The freezer allows them to store their products prior to delivery and expand their business into selling packaged retail cuts. This has allowed them to serve a new market that resulted from the pandemic.

“Without the walk-in freezer, we could only sell animals that were pre-sold. Now we can sell animals that are not necessarily sold prior to butchering. It helps our production model,” said Spies. “Without retail cuts, we are limited to customers who have a larger freezer.”

As interest in local food has grown because of the pandemic, the Spies Brothers opened an online store to sell their products, manage their inventory, and started offering subscription box presales. Next summer they also plan to raise 10,000 chickens, which they will store in their freezer and sell to retail customers, in addition to beef and pork products. Acquiring this grant funding also gave them the ability to leverage financing for a refrigerated box truck. As a result, they can now directly deliver meat orders to their customers.

Both Henry and Austin Spies are young farmers with a focus on a sustainable future. As livestock producers and entrepreneurs, they hope to exemplify how their ecological management model of pasture-raised beef, pork, and poultry will be an example to other farmers in the region.

Located in Cecil County, the Galvinell Meat Company Inc. is a USDA-inspected “old school” butcher shop that has served local farmers and the community since 1968. Today the shop is operated by Jen and Dan McGrath. Jen’s father initially operated the business, and in 2013, Jen and her husband Dan took over the operation.

The COVID-19 Pandemic caused a dramatic increase in demand for their services from local farmers, with appointments now booked through August 2021. Hoping to improve their business’s efficiency, Dan reached out to the Cecil County Department of Economic Development and learned about MARBIDCO’s Pandemic Adjustment Equipment Grant Fund (PAEGF) Program.

“The pandemic hurt badly in the beginning, everything was shut down and no one knew what to do,” said Dan. “Once the meat shortage happened at the grocery stores, people started looking at butcher shops thinking they may able to get it [meat] here. Well, that has spurred a whole new generation of [customers]. And they don’t seem to be going away, they keep coming back.”

With PAEGF grant funds, the business was able to acquire two new meat grinders, a band saw, a hydraulic stuffer for sausage casings, and a bacon-slicing machine. According to Dan, the new pieces of equipment have increased the business’s operational efficiency by approximately 12 percent. The increase in efficiency has allowed the butcher shop to start working through the wait list of customers they have for appointments.

Galvinell Meat Company processes beef and pork, with the beef being dry-aged for 10 to 14 days. According to Dan, this contributes to the flavor of the cuts the butcher shop makes.

In the beginning of the pandemic, the business had to make the decision to increase its efficiency, produce an inferior product, or turn away customers. The business made the conscientious decision to stick with their quality products, and according to Dan, it has paid off with the consistent return of their customers. In the future, the company hopes to sell some of its specialty products in retail stores, such as their crab cake sausage and their “Mama Galvinelli” products.

“Right now we are working on increasing the slaughtering for the local farmers, that’s our immediate goal,” said Dan. “With this new equipment, the goal is to speed up efficiency and to make better products with the newer equipment. We are very thankful for what we got.”

The COVID-19 Pandemic has caused many challenges for businesses. For Dwayne and Dawna Nickerson, owners of Sudlersville Frozen Meat Locker, LLC, a meat processor in Queen Anne’s County, the pandemic resulted in a surge of customer interest. Thanks to the Maryland Value Added Producer Grant – Capital Assets Option (MVAPG- CAO) that they received in the Fall of 2019 from MARBIDCO, they have been able to keep up with the demand for their products. Grant funds from this program were used to purchase a new vacuum pack machine.

“It definitely has been an asset to receive the grant money,” said Dwayne. “Before we were doing most of the packaging by hand, now the [vacuum pack] machine does 95% of the work.”

Last fall, as the Nickerson’s began building a new processing room, they learned about MARBIDCO’s MVAPG-CAO program. Applications for the program are accepted once a year, and applicants can apply for grants between $2,500 and $10,000. They are distributed on a competitive basis for value-added processing capital asset projects to eligible crop or livestock producers or processors, agricultural cooperatives, seafood processors, or primary or secondary timber products processors that have been in business for a minimum of two years. Applicants must be creating a product that is value-added and provide a one-for-one cash match.

Already expanding their business, Dwayne and Dawna applied to the grant program and were awarded funds to purchase a vacuum packing machine to increase their business’s efficiency. On an average week, the Sudlersville Frozen Meat Locker processes 12 to 14 beef cows and 35 to 40 hogs. In the summer, they process up to 60 hogs in a week.

The impact that the pandemic had on the Nickersons’ business has been drastic. In the beginning, customers could not enter the store. Vehicles would pull up to the shop, and the customer would be handed a menu of what meat was available. On the first Saturday of this service, 305 people showed up between 8:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., according to Dwayne.

He estimated that over the course of the first Friday and Saturday, they had over 400 customers. Fortunately, the business now is able to open its doors to 10 customers at a time when they wear masks. They are open Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

According to Dwayne, since the pandemic started demand for their products has increased substantially. Because more customers are stocking up on meat, they have had to increase their processing rate. Before, they were producing 1,200 lbs. to 1,500 lbs. of ground beef a week. “We’re now producing 3,500 lbs. to 4,000 lbs. of ground beef a week and working seven days a week,” said Dwayne. “On Saturday’s we have five additional family members working to help keep up with demand. It’s been hectic.”

The impact coronavirus had on the Nickersons’ business led them to apply for MARBIDCO’s Pandemic Adjustment Equipment Grant Fund (PAEGF), which they received. Using this grant they plan to adjust their business by building a larger cold storage facility that will increase their storage capacity, and help them work with local farmers by allowing them to increase the amount of animals they can slaughter. The Nickerson’s plan to maintain their increased level of production.

“We plan to keep processing safe products and keeping our customers happy,” said Dwayne. “Thank you to MARBIDCO for working with us, it’s been an absolute pleasure.”

Amy Falcone grew up in Somerset, Ohio, on her family’s farm, and for most of her life working as a nurse. It was only after a vacation in Utah that she was inspired to start her own farm, an aquaponics operation producing microgreens.

In 2017, Falcone and her family were on a back roads tour of Zion Canyons, when they were taken to a restaurant with amazingly fresh vegetables, fish and chicken. At the end of the meal, the chef came out and revealed that all the food they had eaten had been grown there.

“He had an aquaponics greenhouse out back which supplied all the food for their meals,” said Falcone, recalling the trip. Once the vacation was over, Falcone returned home, where she kept driving by a farm that was for sale. Within two months of that vacation, Falcone had purchased the 103-acre farm located in Brookeville, Maryland and had named it Bella Vita Farm. The name “Bella Vita” means beautiful life in Italian, and it holds significance to Falcone because of her Sicilian husband, and the beautiful life they have made together.

Falcone’s vision for the farm included establishing her own greenhouse aquaponics operation. To create her vision, she used several resources, including hiring consultants from Colorado and applying for a MARBIDCO incentive grant. Falcone first heard about MARBIDCO from her local University of Maryland extension office. She received a Maryland Value Added Producer Grant (Capital Assets Option) in 2019. Using these matching funds, she was able to invest in a solar system and acquire fish tanks for her aquaponics system.

“Our whole goal was to be local and sustainable because I don’t want everything on my plate to be from 1,500 miles away,” said Falcone about the operation. The farm has an aquaponics system, and axe throwing activities and has been the site of multiple weddings. The acres not used by Falcone for her aquaponics operation are conventionally farmed and managed by the neighboring farm. However, the greenhouse on the property is managed by Falcone and Farm Manager Jeff Dowling.

In the greenhouse, there are four 500-gallon fish tanks, each of which can hold approximately 110 or more koi fish. Koi fish are good at producing nutrients consistently, which is important for aquaponics operations. In the future, Falcone plans to incorporate tilapia into the aquaponics system, which then could also be sold. To compensate for the nutrients the fish do not produce, Falcone and Dowling add organic nutrients to the water. This water is then circulated to the plants, which include micro greens, and ten different varieties of lettuce and basil, among others. Each week, Falcone and Dowling plant between 800 and 1,000 plants.

The building houses automated fans to regulate the temperature, and shade cloth to decrease the sunlight entering the building. Screens on the side of the building are also in place to keep insects away from the plants.

As farm manager, Dowling monitors the water chemistry. Each day one person typically spends four hours managing the daily tasks of the greenhouse. Both Falcone and Dowling can supervise the aquaponics system from their phones. The only waste from the Bella Vita operation is water that evaporates, according to Falcone. And on harvest days, both Falcone and Dowling work to harvest the plants, prepare shipments and deliver them to local restaurants. Falcone also said that whatever the farm does not sell is donated to those in need.

To learn more about Bella Vita Farms, check out their website at www.bellavitafarm.com.

In early 2019, MARBIDCO was approached with the opportunity to help the Baltimore Development Corporation on a project in Baltimore City to bring natural dye production to Maryland, including growing indigo. This project is known as the Baltimore Natural Dyes Initiative Pilot Farmer Project.

A variety of public entities and a local college were brought together in support of this project. These include the Maryland Department of Commerce, the Baltimore Development Corporation, the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA), the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, the University of Maryland Extension, the Maryland State Arts Council, and MARBIDCO.

The project is located at the Parks and People Foundation headquarters in Baltimore City, near Druid Hill Park. Plants being grown include two species of indigo and other flowering plants (such as woad) that are used as natural dyes. The restored historic carriage house on the property is being used to process the natural dyes once harvested. MICA is offering a number of courses on the history and use of natural dyes through its Fiber Department and is planning additional economic development research that will potentially benefit the City and the region.

Fabric dyed with indigo and Black Eyed Susan's grown by the Baltimore Natural Dye Initiative Farmer Project.

MARBIDCO’s Financial Programs Specialist Allison Roe had the opportunity to harvest some of the crops grown on the property and participate in a dyeing demonstration at the end of the growing season. The event was also attended by Maryland’s First Lady Yumi Hogan and Secretary of Housing and Community Development Kenneth Holt.

Financial Programs Specialist Allison Roe meeting Maryland's First Lady, Yumi Hogan.

Pictured to the right is financial programs specialist Allison Roe meeting Maryland’s First Lady, Yumi Hogan while attending a demonstration at the Parks and People Foundation in Baltimore City. Neith Little, an urban ag educator with UME Extension, is looking on.

Located off the beaten path in Frederick County, Black Ankle Vineyards received one of MARBIDCO’s first Maryland Resource-Based Industry Financing Fund (MRBIFF) loans in 2008. The loan was used to build a straw bale building for hosting wine tastings and storing products. Now, over 10 years later, the vineyard is a thriving business looking to expand.

In the early 2000s, Sarah O’Herron and Ed Boyce first considered starting a vineyard in Maryland. As management consultants, both had experience doing research, and they turned their expertise to learning about grapes and wine. Together they bought Black Ankle Vineyards in 2002, a 150-acre farm. When working with MidAtlantic Farm Credit, they learned about the support MARBIDCO could offer for them on their project and applied for an MRBIFF loan.

“MARBIDCO’s programs helped support us, and from a purely financial standpoint, they helped us when we were considered a high risk,” said O’Herron. “However, they have also just been very supportive, getting our name out there when we were new to the industry.”

With the loan secured, O’Herron and Boyce had straw planted on the farm. O’Herron said they wanted to craft as much as possible from what was on the property. The idea of a straw bale building was appealing because most of the materials used to build the facility could be found or grown on the farm, and it would be a great insulator for wine. The building has a wooden structure with straw used as insulation, and the roof sits directly on top. This space became both a storage and wine-tasting area. In 2008, the building was complete, and they opened their winery’s doors with 15 parking spaces. Since then, they have expanded their facility to include outdoor seating, two additional buildings, and parking for up to 400 cars.

“We now are looking into expansion. We have grown so much here and keep getting bigger,” said O’Herron. “We’ve hit a point where we want to expand into new properties.”

At Black Ankle Vineyard, they have over 50 acres of vines planted, with 45 acres of fruit-bearing. They grow 12 varieties of grapes, which they mix and match to produce their wines. The number of wines they create each year depends on how many grapes they produce. Generally, they sell six to eight wines at one time at their winery.

“When we started we believed we would make good wine,” said O’Herron. “The personal connection with customers who love the area and space has been surprising and much more than we expected. We have a huge wine club, and people who come here every weekend. Our space is nice, welcoming, and comfortable.”

To learn more about Black Ankle Vineyards, check out their website at www.blackankle.com.

When most families sell their farm, it is rare to have an opportunity to buy it back. However, Scott Shank and his family were given that chance in 2017, after applying to MARBIDCO’s Next Generation Farm Acquisition Program.

From a young age, Scott and his brother Tom worked on the family farm with their mother and father, making hay, feeding calves, and running equipment. But neither Scott nor his brother planned on becoming farmers, and both found alternative career paths. However, in 2009, their father passed away unexpectedly.

“My mother sold the farm to a local businessman – and he said he would always be willing to sell it back to us,” said Scott. At the same time, Tom decided that he wanted to rent the farm and continue to work and live on the property.

“I said ‘You’re crazy - you want to be a farmer?’” said Scott. “Then one day I was on Facebook and saw an ad from MARBIDCO through a friend in Farm Bureau. I went ahead and called my county representative, and he said you actually qualify for this really well.”

Scott then began the application process for the Next Generation Farm Acquisition Program. With Tom, his sister, and his wife working together they were able to complete the application, and in April 2018, they bought the farm back.

“I think the Next Gen program is great,” said Scott. “For me, it hit a niche that some of the other programs didn’t for other farms to preserve farm ground. We couldn’t get into the local farmland preservation program because we are too close to the town line.”

Today, the Shanks have 70 acres of tillable land and a corn and soybean rotation. Scott lives beside the farm in the home he grew up in, along with his wife and two kids. “Our goal is to sustain the family farm and keep it in the family forever,” said Scott, reflecting on his and his brother’s intentions.

Farming is often passed down through generations, and this is true for the Duley family. In 2013, Paul Duley, and his wife Missi, took over his father’s farming operation, Duley Farms. It is comprised of 2,000 acres, which are mostly leased and in Prince George’s and St. Mary's Counties. Their home farm is in Upper Marlboro in Prince George’s County. Their primary crops are grains, including corn, soybeans, wheat, and sorghum.

“I have been farming my whole life,” says Paul. “My father was a farmer up until about five years ago when he was forced to retire due to medical reasons. I had to take over the farming operation and decision-making.” Paul heard about MARBIDCO through his local USDA Farm Services Agency (FSA) office. He decided to apply to the Next Gen Program because it has been difficult to figure out how to afford to purchase a farm. The farm he purchased also had sentimental value.

“It was my grandparent’s farm, is centrally located, and has on-site grain storage,” said Paul. “The expense of buying a different location and moving everything was just too great.” According to Paul, the Next Gen Program was a win-win for him and his family as well as the public.

“MARBIDCO assisted us greatly by providing the funds to allow us to purchase the farm and still be able to afford all the expenses of farming,” said Paul, “by not having a huge down payment and reducing our monthly loan payment. It was always our intention to have the land preserved, we just weren't sure how to afford the payments until preservation went through.”

In the future, Paul says they plan to expand the grain storage they have on their farm. They also want to expand their business into selling bagged grain for animal and wildlife feed and to have a grain handling set up where they will be able to buy grain from local farmers as well.

Brittanie and Andy Collier always knew they wanted to own a piece of land to operate and raise kids on. For over five years they searched for an affordable property when they heard of MARBIDCO and the new Next Generation Farmland Acquisition Program, or the Next Gen Program. Using this program, the Colliers purchased Hidden Acres Farm in December 2017 in Talbot County.

“It is definitely a wonderful program, and it wouldn’t have been possible for us to purchase this farm without it,” said Brittanie. The program is geared towards young or beginning farmers who have trouble entering or staying in the agricultural profession because of relatively high farmland costs and a lack of access to adequate financial capital to purchase farmland. It also helps to preserve agricultural land from future development. “It’s nice to see a program out there for young farmers trying to start,” said Andy.

For the past 10 years, the farm had been leased to grow grain. The Colliers plan to form a partnership with the leasing farmer in 2019 to learn more about farming without becoming overwhelmed. In the future, the Colliers plan to work full-time on the property and into retirement. “I have a business – Mason Jars by Britt, that make centerpieces for weddings,” said Brittanie. “My vision is to grow the flower part of the business as well, to make bouquets, boutonnieres, and the flowers that go into centerpieces, as well as enable DIY couples to purchase cut flowers to make their own creations.”

Andy also wants to plant and sell switchgrass from the property. This grass is used for ground cover and as camouflage for duck and goose hunters. The grass would be cut and sold once a year. The rest of the acreage will continue to be in grain production.

Both Colliers grew up in Queen Anne’s County and have seen their hometowns become suburbanized in recent years. “We’ve always been a big supporter of land preservation for future generations,” said Brittanie. “We enjoy seeing open farmland, not all housing developments. We want to make sure not everything is built up, and preserve the Eastern Shore lifestyle.”

Loan officers are a critical partner to MARBIDCO, helping prospective borrowers benefit from our programs. One loan officer is Lisa Cunningham, who works with various types of farmers in Dorchester, Talbot, and Caroline Counties to get access to commercial and financial assistance.

“My goal is to help the agriculture community gain access to the financing they need for their farming operations,” said Lisa. “I enjoy helping beginning farmers and educating them on programs like MARBIDCO. There are fewer farmers in our nation, so young and beginning farmers are important to today’s Agriculture Industry. It’s hard to get started and I want to help make the process easier.”

Lisa attended West Virginia University, where she initially planned on becoming an agricultural educator. However, she realized teaching was not for her, and instead became an agricultural business major with a minor in horticulture. This led her to joining MidAtlantic Farm Credit after graduation and become a loan officer. Cunningham learned about MARBIDCO and our programs when starting at Farm Credit several years ago. More recently, she gave a presentation about the Next Gen Program that MARBIDCO offers, providing insight and information from a lender’s perspective.

“In my point of view, one of the biggest benefits of the Next Gen Program is it provides equity needed to purchase a farm,” said Lisa. “In general, 20% of the purchase price is needed to put down when seeking a loan, for a farm or property purchase and that can be a lot of money. That’s one benefit the MARBIDCO Next Gen program gives to young and beginning farmers and since it is a grant program it’s not considered a loan so their debt load decreases and they have a higher chance of profitability.”

Lisa grew up surrounded by agriculture, raised on her family farm in northern Talbot County. They have a greenhouse operation that focuses on growing vegetable transplants for six weeks before shipping them to farmers along the East Coast. Lisa was an active member of 4-H and FFA. In 2008, she was crowned Ms. Talbot County Farm Bureau, and later Ms. Maryland Farm Bureau.

“That taught me a lot,” she said about being Ms. Maryland Farm Bureau. “It opened my eyes to the diversity of agriculture in Maryland and the importance of sustaining that diversity for generations to come, which MARBIDCO is a big part of.”

When Wylie Abbott Jr. decided to enter the aquaculture industry and grow oysters, he researched various programs to support his new business endeavor. Thus, when he heard about MARBIDCO while at a meeting, he knew he had to make a phone call to find out more. In May 2018, he successfully acquired a Maryland Shellfish Aquaculture Financing Fund Loan from MARBIDCO.

Using this loan, Wylie purchased cages and additional seed oysters to expand his oyster-growing operation. “It’s more work than the average person would do, but it’s what we want to do,” said Wylie. “It will all come around at some point with a lot of patience and help.” Before starting his business, WM Abbott and Son Oyster Co., Wylie relied on wild fisheries for his livelihood.

According to Wylie, for 40 years he worked on the water in oyster and crab fisheries, starting with his father at the age of 17. “I see the writing on the wall with wild fisheries,” said Wylie. “More harvest areas to fish are taken away, and more regulations, so I started my own (farm) business now because it’s the way of the future. And I want to have something for him (my son) that’s viable.”

In addition to the changing landscape of wild fisheries, Wylie says that aquaculture offers more stability without relying as heavily on Mother Nature. However, according to Wylie, the process of growing oysters is an everyday all-day endeavor, and the more money or effort a person puts into it, the bigger return they will have.

“As far as my family - we have been doing this all our lives, and we’ve seen really good times and seen really bad times,” said Wylie. His son, Jason Abbott, works with him and first began working when he was 17. Together with their employee Joe Gray, they manage 850,000 oysters, and they are in the process of acquiring an additional 500,000 to have a total of 1.3 million oysters growing on their lease.

“I would like to see in five years when I’m 62, my son take over and run the whole thing and I can sit back and just get a check,” said Wylie. “He’s our next generation, and he really wants to take the business to the next level.”

While specializing in beef cattle at veterinary school, Roxann Motroni, DVM, Ph.D., realized she wanted to have a beef herd. However, that day came much sooner than she anticipated when she moved to Upper Marlboro in Prince George’s County. After starting her family business, 804 Cattle Company, in 2016, she heard about an opportunity to expand her farm with help from the Southern Maryland Ag Revolving Loan Fund.

The fund was designed by the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission (SMADC) and MARBIDCO to assist Southern Maryland agricultural producers with smaller agricultural projects that typically might not be financed by traditional commercial lenders.

Motroni heard about this opportunity to grow her business from her mother, Chantal Brooks, who in turn had read about it online.

“It was really easy to put together an application,” said Motroni. “The hardest part was getting all the signatures,” Upon receiving the loan, they were able to build up their infrastructure, put more fencing around the property, as well as purchase three additional cows and a bull. Some of the loan proceeds also went into a chute and head gate system used to load the cattle, perform artificial insemination and vaccinations, as well as to oversee general herd health, and perform pregnancy checks.

Motroni lives beside the farm property with her family. Her mother and father live on the farm, and also help take care of the cattle. Her brothers, who are co-owners of the business, live in White Marsh, Maryland, and Richmond, Virginia.

“I want my daughter to learn to love the land, to see hard-working people, and see the world,” said Motroni. The family currently has 13 cows in their herd, four of which are calves. The farm consists of 33 acres, 10 of which are in the forest. In addition to working on the farm, Motroni works as the USDA Agricultural Research Service national program leader for animal health. When she is away, Brooks watches the cows and makes sure they are taken care of.

“I think we would definitely like to expand our operation, sell out our beef every time and get into more marketing and have a steady clientele for every year,” said Motroni. “We definitely want more cattle, but marketing to the public is our priority to expand our client base. Right now all our clients are people we know.”

The 804 Cattle Company has a website, 804cattle.com, and a Facebook page, where they offer a variety of information about their business and products.

The number of Maryland wineries has been increasing over the past several years, but the number of wine grapes grown in the state has not been keeping up. Thus, when Vince and Tami Gesiskie decided to start a vineyard, it was because they knew there was a demand for Maryland-grown grapes.

“We started visiting local wineries in Montgomery County and became friends with them,” said Vince. “They told us they wanted to produce 100% of their wine from Maryland-grown grapes, but there weren’t enough (grapes) for them.”

With this idea in mind, the family decided to begin their own vineyard. Living in Montgomery County, the family searched for land in the area to start their vineyard. However, they eventually found a 58-acre farm in Clear Spring (Washington County) that fit their needs. The Gesiskie’s three daughters, Ellie, Gracie, and Lily, chose its name, Three Sisters Vines. For them, the next step was to prepare the land and purchase grape vines. Vince heard about MARBIDCO from the Maryland Grape Growers Association and Mid-Atlantic Farm Credit.

Once receiving the Vineyard Planting Loan Fund, they were able to begin purchasing the vines they wanted. The Fund is designed to help meet the unique financing needs of Maryland landowners who want to plant fruit-bearing vines and trees.

"MARBIDCO was able to offer us better interest rates and payment schedules versus a regular bank. It also provided relevant contacts for us to utilize that a normal bank wouldn’t be able to offer,” said Ellie, their daughter, of MARBIDCO’s unique loan program.

Currently, the family has five acres of vines planted, with four different varieties of grapes, including chardonnay, merlot, cabernet franc, and gewürztraminer. They plan to prep an additional 18 to 20 acres for next year’s vines and begin growing Petite Verdot as well. In the future, they plan to have a total of 40 acres of grape vines.

The family works together to run the vineyard. Ellie helps with the farm and figuring out the logistics of what the family needs to do. Tami helps by researching information about the vineyard's agronomy needs.

Vince also is restoring the 200-year-old farmhouse on the property, locally known as the ‘three sisters house,’ since it is one of three identical houses in the area. Vince says that the family has received a lot of insight and help from their neighbors and that they are grateful for the assistance they have received. The family plans to sell their grapes to other Maryland producers and wineries.

"I would like for us to build relationships with other Maryland vineyards and wineries, whether they are big family-run operations or small family-owned businesses,” said Ellie.