AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Maine’s apple growers are suffering due to the nation’s trade disputes and need help from the federal government, a pair of lawmakers from the state have told the head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Golden called on agriculture secretary Sonny Perdue on March 4 to provide assistance to the state’s small growers of apples. They said the billions of dollars in agricultural aid provided by the administration of President Donald Trump has not found its way to Maine’s apple farmers.
Collins and Golden said most apple farms in Maine are 15 acres or less. The state’s total acreage of apple farms has dipped from more than 3,330 in 2012 to about 2,670 in 2017, the most recent year with statistics available.
The lawmakers added that it’s important for the administration to make aid available for small farms and orchards, as opposed to favoring the bigger operations.
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