Title

"Cover Story" piece on bean farming in Maine. In the 1997 agricultural census,b

Authors

Lee Burnett

Source

Maine Times

Date

9-20-2001

Pages

1, 11

Abstract

"Cover Story" piece on bean farming in Maine. In the 1997 agricultural census,bean farming accounted for just 984 acres with a total crop of less than a million pounds a year, about the equivalent to what is consumed every five weeks by the B & M Baked Bean plant in Portland. Maine bean growers might have gone out of business years ago were it not for the niche market provided by Kennebec Bean Co. of North Vassalboro, which buys three-fourths of the Maine crop. Kennebec, which is owned by Ron Loubier, also markets under the A-1 and Sudbury Soup brands. Russell Libby, executive director of the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, believes the future for beans in Maine lies in reinventing a taste for them, either through gourmet chefs and cookbook writers or by stimulating greater loyalty to Maine farmers.

Subjects

Agriculture, Beans

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