Senate Passes FARM Bill to Support Farms That Feed Massachusetts

BOSTON — On April 1, the Massachusetts Senate passed the FARM Bill, agricultural legislation aimed at supporting Massachusetts’ 7,000 farms, making it easier for families to buy fresh and nutritious food, and protecting the state’s food supply for the future.

The legislation — formally known as S.3029, An Act fostering agricultural resilience in Massachusetts — is a major step forward in supporting Massachusetts farmers and growing the state’s agricultural economy. It builds on a recent special commission report focused on making Massachusetts agricultural operations sustainable for the 21st century.

The FARM Bill helps owners of small farms to grow their businesses by removing hurdles and making agritourism ventures, such as corn mazes and pick-your-own berry and fruit operations, possible. The legislation also supports expanding farm operations with a local option property tax exemption for new agricultural buildings.

“Massachusetts relies on the farms and fisheries that put fresh, local food on our tables, and it’s on us to make sure they can keep going and thrive,” Senate President Karen Spilka said. “This bill does exactly that. It helps farms stay open; makes it easier for families to buy fresh, local food; and strengthens our food system for the long run. When we support our farmers, we’re supporting everyone in Massachusetts.”

The bill makes it easier for residents to access healthy food, making permanent the Healthy Incentives Program to help families afford fresh produce and the Farm to School program to bring local ingredients into schools. By codifying these programs, the Senate is continuing its response to federal actions that threaten food access as a part of the Senate’s Response 2025 initiative. A further Response 2025 priority requires that state emergency planning efforts prioritize the security of the local food supply chain given federal cuts to emergency planning.

The FARM Bill additionally requires regular reporting on the distribution of local produce through food banks, universal school meals, Meals on Wheels, the Massachusetts Emergency Food Assistance Program, and other food assistance programs. This data will help assess the damage from detrimental federal actions such as the elimination of the USDA Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, which purchased food from historically underserved Massachusetts farmers and provided it to underserved communities.

“Today, the Senate advanced urgently needed legislation to support the farms, producers, and fisheries that are the foundation of our local and regional food systems,” said state Sen. Jo Comerford, co-chair of the Special Commission on Agriculture in the 21st Century and Senate vice chair of the Joint Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries. “In Western and North Central Massachusetts, where agriculture is core to our economy and identity, we know that, when we lose farmland, we lose far more than fields — we lose livelihoods, food security, and community.”