MORNING AG Clips • January 8, 2025
As growers begin studying seed catalogs to plan next season’s crops, an iconic Maine seed company enters the new year with solar panels generating energy on the warehouse roof. Wood Prairie Family Farm is in the far northern town of Bridgewater, Maine, near the Canadian border. Best known for its certified organic table and Maine-certified seed potatoes, the farm sells its seeds via a mail-order catalog and website. Founded by Megan and Jim Gerritsen in 1976, the farm has been grappling with rising energy costs in recent years. Maine’s electricity pricing runs higher than most places in the country. Fortunately, USDA’s Rural Energy for America Program was available to help fund a solution for Wood Prairie Farm. By late that summer, installation of a 29.44-kilowatt system roof-mounted solar system was complete.