Ever been to a Maryland farm to see how our food or drink is grown? Have you seen a cow being milked, or rye for spirits being harvested? How about watermelons being hand-picked, or broccoli seedlings being gently planted with a no-till method in early spring? Maryland’s farms encompass an engaging world many of us never get to explore.
To acquaint Marylanders with their agriculture—the state’s number one industry—Maryland Public Television (MPT), in partnership with the Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA), has created Maryland Farm & Harvest, an Emmy Award-winning show and multimedia series that puts a human face on farming. Executive Producer Mike English (who was recently promoted to managing director of content for MPT), and his team of Series Producer/Director Sarah Sampson, three segment producers, and one camera man, break down complex environmental issues into easily understood viewing adventures. The episodes convey the Chesapeake Bay as a definitive cause of and solution to water problems. Maryland farmers have an extra-efficient laboratory to work with.
Maryland Farm & Harvest explores the state to help us see and experience what each farmer goes through day-to-day. We met English to discuss the whys and hows of Maryland Farm & Harvest.
There were some interesting stories on how the show came together. English originally began his career as an agricultural journalist, knowing he wanted to help the public understand what farming is all about. In 2009, while working with MPT on shows such as Outside Maryland, English also produced a one-hour documentary, The Runoff Dilemma, which opened up the conversation about farm runoff. After a couple of years, the Maryland Department of Agriculture proposed a show with a portion of the funding coming from the Maryland Grain Producers Association. Additional funding came from other sources and a half-hour production was born.
The series can be likened to a magazine format, with 30 minutes divided among several stories. The viewers meet real people on the land that their families may have farmed for generations. The stories pull back the curtain, not just on incredible hardships and challenges, but also convey many feel-good perspectives. In a state with great agricultural awareness, the show brings environmentalists and farmers together for a meeting of the minds over the bay’s health. Since the show’s inception, host Joanne Clendining, who has spent years running a farm, has led the exploration of local stories. Each episode opens with Clendining holding up a “thing-a ma-jig,” which is either a piece of antique farm equipment or something from a farm museum. She asks viewers what they think of it and gives the answer at the end of the show. This extremely popular segment appeals to tool aficionados and many write in about it. After individual “now and then” farm vignettes, the show ends with a segment, “The Local Buy.” During this “wrap up,” Al Spoler, a connoisseur of local food and wine, tastes some of the local wares and informs viewers where they can find them.
The Big Deal
Farms are integral to a healthy economy for Maryland. Agricultural-reliant “support industries” contributed nearly $12.5 billion to the state economy last year, supported 41,129 jobs, and added more than $495 million in combined state and local tax revenue. Crop revenues make up roughly 50 percent of Maryland’s agricultural output revenue.
But all of this is largely unknown by the general public, thus the impetus for the television program. “The program was conceived as way to paint the portrait of farmers and rural Maryland and tell the stories of agriculture,” says Mark Powell, chief of marketing with the Maryland Department of Agriculture. “It has succeeded mightily. We get feedback that people have seen the program and love it.”
Farming is an arduous industry, in which the outcome relies heavily on Mother Nature. The show does a great job of enabling armchair explorers to discover the resilient farmers who are sustaining Maryland’s foundation.Let’s meet a few of them υ
Farm to Pizza
According to the National Association of Pizza Operators, Americans eat enough pizza in a day to cover 100 acres.
Part of that story begins at Mercuro Farms in Frederick County, where farmer Katie Kearns performs a morning ritual in the wee hours—the daily milking.
The milk is then loaded onto a truck bound for a milk coop, Lanco Pennland in Washington County, which opened in 2016. Kurt Williams of Lanco Pennland says that for the last four years, dairy farmers in the Mid-Atlantic region have been faced with the dumping of milk, partly due to non-dairy alternative milk products. The idea of a newly-opened plant which processes 500 tractor loads of milk monthly, has been a wonderful thing for the dairy industry. They now are at full capacity, yielding about 2.3 million pounds of cheese per month, both hard and soft cheeses.
At the company’s cheese making division, Pennland Pure, milk becomes cheese—specifically, gooey, stretchy, mozzarella cheese. In the process, milk, with different ratios of butterfat and protein, starts in giant vats. Cultures are added, followed by rennet, which sets the cheese. The curds are cooked, cut, and moved to finishing tables. Since the focus here is pizza, a star cheese is made via a technique called “pasta filata,” in which it’s cooked to enhance its stretching ability. This kind of mozzarella is then formed into logs, which then float down a “lazy river” of brine before being packaged.
It’s part of an effort by a Maryland-based dairy cooperative to create a new market for its 650-member farms by restoring an old cheese plant to its former glory. But Pennland Pure makes a lot more than mozzarella cheese. Their new signature item is a hard cheese named Braddock’s Crossing (a mix between Parmesan and sharp cheddar), after General Edward Braddock—commander in chief of the 13 colonies at the start of French and Indian War.
Farmers’ Canine Companions
Protective farm dogs earn their keep by being workers, companions, and body guards for poultry and their eggs. Born right in the pasture, puppies are then put in the fields at 10 weeks old with poultry and other animals. It takes almost a year of “on the job” training before they are on full duty.
Since 1873, a private language of whistles and calls have been used with sheep dogs. On Carla King’s 60-acre sheep farm in Davidsonville, her Border Collies are much more than friendly companions. They’re also indispensable helpers that herd King’s flock of sheep far more efficiently than any person could. First thing in the morning, the dog holds the sheep at bay so they don’t stampede the feed. Border Collies herd the stray sheep as well.
Meanwhile, Pomeranians wrestle rebellious chickens at Valerie Lafferty’s Springfield Farm in Sparks. Lafferty found that her Pomeranians had untapped talent—herding their chickens back into the hen house at the end of the day.
Many farm dogs seem to have the run of the land, and they’ve certainly earned that privilege! From guarding sheep, goats, and chickens to assisting in dressage lessons, these four-legged farmers put in a lot of hard work.
Behind a Farm Photographer’s Lens
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Go behind the lens of a farm photographer, as Edwin Remsberg, based in Harford County, takes documentary images in the photojournalism tradition. Fallston is home to Remberg’s Belvedere Farm, which was established in 1823 and remains family-owned. He is involved in an ongoing project documenting the 20-acre farm that his grandfather started. Remsberg inherited the farm and currently lives the life of an agrarian artist on his, now, sheep farm. He feels the need to continue his family’s legacy and does this by archiving farm life.
After college, Remsberg left the farm to become, as he says, “a dashing photojournalist capturing war zones and chaos.” In his thirties, he realized his grandfather’s diaries could speak “as the ghost” of his grandfather. His work became more meaningful when he focused on his roots.
He has also photographed farming in all 50 states and 16 Maryland counties. He feels he holds a mirror up for people to see how important they are. He captures the spirit of farming, taking beautiful pictures of not just the farm, but the farm work.
In the 1800s, the Remsbergs raised sheep and grain, and then operated as a dairy farm from the 1920s until 1972. The farm has hosted thousands of school children over the years and features corn mazes and pumpkin picking in the fall. The farm’s newest incarnation as a cut flower purveyor has become the farm’s mainstay, offering both traditional and unique varieties. In fact, 35 different varieties of flowers are grown, including their prized Dahlias. The cut flowers are sold at local farmers’ markets in Harford County and at the Remsberg’s farm.
Rita Calvert has close to three decades in the food, media production, marketing, and public relations fields. She has created myriad programs, events, cooking sessions on national television for corporations, the stage for cookbooks, and founded the original Annapolis School of Cooking.
