Farmers voice uncertainty during McGovern’s annual tour through region

HATFIELD — A wide variety of colored bell peppers and tomatoes that will be ready a month earlier than those planted in open fields are growing this summer in two high tunnels at Bardwell Farm. Later this year, the unheated, plastic-covered structures, which each stretch 200 feet long, will switch to winter green storage crops.

Both hoop houses, says farm owner Harrison Bardwell, are critical to expanding profit margins at what he calls a “365 farm,” put up with financial support from the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

“We are growing 365,” Bardwell said. “Our goal is to have something to harvest 365 days a year.”

Yet even with the successes since taking over in 2016 as the ninth-generation owner of the Main Street farm founded in 1685, 2025 has been a tough year, Bardwell said, due to the national political climate, markets lost and unpredictable weather. Getting three more high tunnels in place would be ideal to ensure a more solid financial footing.

“We run out of everything we grow in the winter…. to expand business or pay for improvements, we need to utilize programs to be more profitable and sustainable,” Bardwell said.

His concerns were relayed to U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern Wednesday afternoon at the final stop on the first day of his 15th annual districtwide farm tour. With federal support for such small farms at risk, McGovern said the Trump administration is prioritizing bigger, more corporate farms.

McGovern’s message for farmers in the region is the federal government should be the wind at their back and “we want to be helpful to you.”

“These farms are critical to our local food system and local economy, and they are good stewards of the environment,” McGovern said.

What he learns he intends to bring back to the House Committee on Agriculture, where he will be able to tell the stories of local farms. Earlier in the day, McGovern made visits to Foxtrot Farm in Ashfield, Hagers Farm Market in Shelburne and Warner Farm and Big River Chestnuts, both in Sunderland.

“I understand the frustration, with the abrupt cuts and ending of certain programs,” McGovern said

McGovern was joined by Ashley Randle, commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture, and representatives from that state agency and the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture. The tour was set to continue Thursday in central Massachusetts.

“Our farmers are facing a lot of challenges and uncertainty,” McGovern said. “The Trump administration has inexplicably withdrawn funds from many programs farmers rely on.”

One of those concerns he is hearing about is the $200 billion being cut over the next decade from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and corresponding reductions to the state’s Healthy Incentives Program, which gives more buying power to families.

McGovern said he will advocate for more certainty for the “not mega farms” and counter a prevailing attitude of “get big, or get out.” He also wants to remind schools, universities, hospitals and other major employers that buying local produce is essential.

Bardwell Farm is nestled in Hatfield center, set between a cemetery and tobacco barn and a stone’s throw from the elementary school and Memorial Town Hall.

Bardwell went to Stockbridge School at the University of Massachusetts to learn sustainable agricultural practices and to get a scientific background on growing food, such as using integrated pest management and cover crops, and also had some business knowledge mixed in.

The farm has a nine-person production crew, and 15 to 17 workers at a time, with 25 different crops on 50 acres spread around 15 other fields.

Bardwell explained that he relies on a mix of Community Supported Agriculture, farmers markets and there is also a farmstand in front of historic farmhouse with various produce in season.

“I love supporting the local community so the citizens of the town can be fed well,” Bardwell said.

About three quarters of the produce is sold at wholesale, with retail the remaining 25%, divided between hyperlocal in the area and the Boston area.

It’s farther away where difficulties have arisen.

“It’s been a rough season,” Bardwell said. “Markets have been challenging this year. We’re definitely struggling to find certain markets for our products.”

The sentiment of concern and uncertainty was also expressed by Foxtrot owner Abby Ferla, and Hager’s owner and manager Kim Stevens.

Ferla noted her worries about the Trump administration’s closing of all Regional Food Business Centers and the loss of money associated with that pandemic-era program, while Stevens points to the SNAP and HIP cuts and the possible loss of a revenue stream over the winter, when the tourist season ends.

Randle, a Deerfield native, said she is seeing for the first time in her role a level of impact to farms from federal uncertainty. “To hear the firsthand impacts from farms, we know it has a ripple effect through the community,” Randle said.

McGovern said having farms stay economically viable is important. Before departing Bardwell Farm, he browsed and then bought several items from the farmstand.

Growing up in Worcester in an urban environment, McGovern said visiting farmers and their fields is enjoyable.

“I love coming to farms,” McGovern said. “I’m so inspired by what farmers are doing and appreciate that they work hard and they make something useful.”

“Washington could learn a lesson from that.”

Staff writer Erin-Leigh Hoffman contributed to this report.