Merrymeeting Food Council is seeking applicants for this year’s Farm Skills Training Program, which aims to counter Maine’s chronic labor shortage on farms.
This year’s farm training program runs for roughly 11 weeks, six to 10 hours per week, from mid-March through early June, paying participants $15 per hour. The deadline to apply is Feb. 1 for people living in the Bath or Brunswick region. However, priority is given to applicants ages 16–24 and anyone over 16 who qualifies for TANF or SNAP food benefits.
The Farm Skills Training Program was established in 2022 to provide participants with the skills needed to work on farms and assist participants in accessing food, child care, transportation and career support through the Merrymetting Food Council and Goodwill’s Workforce Solutions Program.

The Merrymeeting Food Council Farm Skills Training Program participants work the fields at Growing to Give Farm in Brunswick. Courtesy of Kelsey Kobik
“Our Farm Skills Training Program is about meeting a need for farm workers in our community,” said Jamie Pacheco, Merrymeeting Food Council food access coordinator. “It offers participants a supportive training program, and more broadly, it is about helping everyone consider food system work as a viable career option.”
Home-schooled high schooler Leah Duquette attended the program last year because she loved working in her family’s garden. Last summer, Duquette worked on Willow Pond Farm in Sabattus, learning about crop production and animal care.
“Truthfully, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do after high school, but Farm Skills has grown my love for gardening,” Duquette said. “I feel like I could start my own small farming business.”
The farm training combines virtual workshops on résumé writing and communication skills with in-person training on planting, soil management, tool care and produce washing at vegetable farms in the Midcoast. Many of the training sessions happen under the guidance of staff at the nonprofit farm Growing to Give in Brunswick.
Development of the farm training program began in 2019, with 2022 serving as the pilot year. Merrymeeting Food Council worked with 10 partners, many of which continue to participate today.
Some remaining partners are Goodwill Workforce, Growing to Give, Midcoast Hunger Prevention and the University of Maine Cooperative Extension.
“Initially, the program we envisioned as being part of Tedford Housing in Brunswick,” said Kate Wallace, Merrymeeting Food Council farm skills training coordinator. “So it was going to be a program that was exclusively offered to residents at Tedford, but that shifted, and the pilot was open to everybody.”
Last year, the farming training had nine participants — four high school students and the rest ranging from their 20s to early 60s.
“I think it is really important to us to highlight and educate about what the food system is and how it works,” Wallace said. “If people can learn those things and learn how to grow food more sustainably, even if it’s just for their own families, that is increasing food security.”
Send questions/comments to the editors.
We invite you to add your comments. We encourage a thoughtful exchange of ideas and information on this website. By joining the conversation, you are agreeing to our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is found on our FAQs. You can modify your screen name here.
Comments are managed by our staff during regular business hours Monday through Friday as well as limited hours on Saturday and Sunday. Comments held for moderation outside of those hours may take longer to approve.
Join the Conversation
Please sign into your Press Herald account to participate in conversations below. If you do not have an account, you can register or subscribe. Questions? Please see our FAQs.