Orono’s University of Maine Cooperative Extension recently released the sixth installment of “Growing Maine,” a series of short documentaries highlighting Maine food producers and farm families. The latest video tells the story of Worcester’s Blueberries, a lowbush blueberry farm in southeast Piscataquis County, according to a news release from Leslie Forstadt, UMaine.

With more than 30 summer employees and the off-season crew of two, plus Blue the dog, Lee and Everett Worcester own and manage a blueberry farm in Orneville Township.

The Worcesters share the story of how the farm was started, how they balanced careers in education and real estate with being farmers, and how blueberry farming turned from a hobby into a business.

The UMaine Extension provides the company guidance on growing blueberries and assistance generating value-added products including blueberry jam and salsa.

The video series can help consumers get to know their food sources better, as farmers and producers share behind-the-scenes perspectives on how decisions are made. For those aspiring to farm, the videos are a way to hear directly from farmers and producers about what is most important to them, according to the release.

UMaine Extension helps support and grow the food-based economy statewide, and is the only entity that touches every aspect of the Maine Food System, where policy, research, education, production, processing, commerce, nutrition and food security and safety are integral and interrelated.

The “Growing Maine” series can be viewed online at extension.umaine.edu. Viewers can suggest future story ideas for new videos that will be released throughout the year.

For more information, contact Forstadt at 581-3487 or leslie.forstadt@maine.edu.


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