Click this link to go to our 2020 Convention Homepage
This is an archived page for the 2017 convention. To learn about the 2018 convention, click here.
Registration for the convention closed January 26th.
There is no registration at the door, as the event has fully sold out.
This year the convention will take place in a new location, at the Kennebec Community College Alfond Campus in Fairfield/Hinckley (just north of Waterville, 6 miles from I95), from 8:30-4:00. The campus location will enable us to have multiple, concurrent sessions throughout the day, with more room for exhibits, breakout spaces, and room for networking throughout the day. There are a dozen talks/workshops schedule, including sessions on outreach and promotion, federal grant programs, SNAP program outreach, market design and layout, merchandising techniques, youth and family programming, and food safety.
Other new features for the 9th annual Maine Farmers’ Market Convention include:
- Get your scales certified for the season! David Flannery, and inspector from the Weights and Measures Division of the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry, will be present at the convention to provide the service of certifying/approving scales used in farm stands and farmers’ markets statewide. Inspectors will be on site from 8 am until 3:30 pm that day. No appointment is necessary – just drop the scales off upon arrival (make sure to label your scale in advance). The fee for most scales will be $5 each. (Registration for the convention is not required to bring in scales for testing. Learn more here.)
- Become a WIC authorized farmer: The Maine Centers for Disease Control will offer a certification program at the convention site during the last session of the afternoon. The short class is required to become authorized to accept WIC/Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program checks. Get it done in January, and your farm will be authorized for up to three years.
- Exhibition hall: Sponsors and others will have plenty of room to set up exhibits and poster sessions. If you or your market have something to share with other farmers’ markets, please get in touch and get involved.
Concurrent sessions throughout the day: There will be multiple sessions ongoing during each block during the convention. Find the full list here. (Learn more about our speakers and panelists here.)
Sponsor the event for an opportunity to reach participants and exhibit on site! Click here for more information.
Scholarships for participants from Washington and Aroostook counties: Thanks to a generous donor, we have travel stipends available for people traveling from these counties to attend the convention. Click here to apply.
Registration closes January 26th
Traveling to the convention? Find directions here. There are a number of hotel options in the area. This list suggests a few.
Thank you to the convention sponsors:
