Direct Sales Boost Massachusetts Farms

The latest USDA agriculture census data for Massachusetts, released earlier this month, shows farmers weathered the Great Recession as total agricultural sales held steady.  Direct sales to consumers jumped 14 percent between 2007 and 2012.  The growth in direct sales by local farms in western Massachusetts during the five year period mirrored the statewide increase.  WAMC”s Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief Paul Tuthill spoke about the report with Philip Korman, executive director of Communities Involved in Sustaining Agriculture.