ORONO — The University of Maine Cooperative Extension has released the fifth installment of “Growing Maine,” a series of short documentaries highlighting Maine food producers and farm families. The latest video tells the story of Cedar Run Farm in Bradford, a natural grass-fed beef and pork operation.

Leanne and Billy Waters started the farm when their children were young, and now Cierra and Colby are active in the farm operation. Their participation started in the UMaine Extension 4-H program and grew into a full-scale beef operation.

Leanne, Cierra and Colby talk about the past and the vision for the future, as each youth plans to stay connected to agriculture when they finish high school.

The “Growing Maine” video series helps consumers get to know their food sources better. Farmers and producers share their behind-the-scenes perspectives on how decisions are made. For those aspiring to farm, the videos are a way to hear directly from farmers and producers about what is most important to them.

UMaine Extension helps support and grow the food-based economy statewide and is the only entity that touches every aspect of the Maine Food System, where policy, research, education, production, processing, commerce, nutrition and food security and safety are integral and interrelated.

The “Growing Maine” series can be viewed online. Viewers also have the opportunity to suggest future story ideas for new videos that will be released throughout the year. 

FMI: Leslie Forstadt, 207-581-3487, [email protected].