Delmarva Public Media's Jenny O'Connor recently visited Emily's Produce in Cambridge, Maryland to learn about the Maryland Department of Agriculture's
"Eat Like A Marylander" Thanksgiving promotion, which provided 200 boxes to local farms for their promotions of all locally sourced food items for holiday feasts.
O'Connor gets a sneak peek at what's in those holiday boxes, and why the initiative is as much about education the public as it is about helping your local farmer.
According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service, part of the US Dept. of Agriculture, Maryland has 1,290 farms selling food directly to consumers. There are 12,000 farms in total in the state. About 7,000 farms produce commodities from grain and soybeans to Christmas trees. There are about 5,000 livestock and poultry farms.
The value of products sold directly to consumers from farms like Emily's Produce in the 2022 Ag Census was $55.7 million.
