Focus Maine unveils "Cultivating Prosperity," a data-driven plan to grow the state's food economy

Focus Maine onstage presenters Courtney Crossgrove and Angela Holwell on Monday outlined "Cultivating Prosperity," a strategic plan that lays out data, stakeholder input and 100 proposed actions to accelerate Maine's food economy.

Crossgrove, program and metrics manager at Focus Maine, said the project combined literature review, data analysis and stakeholder engagement — including a five-part forum series and workshops — to identify gaps and shape an action framework. "Cultivating Prosperity is a strategic plan for growing Maine's food economy," she said.

Analyst Angela Holwell of CIM Associates presented the report's core metrics, saying the sector produces about $2.8 billion in gross regional product annually, roughly 3% of Maine's economy, and has seen rapid employment growth. "We found about 177% job growth from 2018 to 2023 in the food economy compared with about 2% statewide," Holwell said, adding the sector supports roughly 23,200 jobs in the latest data.

The analysis also flagged supply-chain vulnerabilities: Holwell said approximately 60–65% of inputs across subsectors are imported from out of state. That shortfall informed three prominent opportunities in the report: expand in-state packaging, improve freight and logistics for small producers (especially seafood), and grow USDA-certified meat-processing capacity.

Workforce findings emphasized a mix of low-barrier roles and highly specialized occupations. Holwell said about 48% of evaluated jobs require little to no prior formal training, but a small set of specialized positions account for a large share of farm employment, making targeted training and succession planning essential. She noted that 40% of agricultural producers are over age 65, underscoring recruitment and succession challenges.

The report's action framework covers seven priority areas — entrepreneurship/startup/scalability; supply chain and infrastructure; access to capital and finance; innovation, R&D and technology; sustainability and resiliency; talent and workforce development; and marketing — and identifies 10 "catalyzer" actions to unlock additional steps. Crossgrove read several of the catalyzers, including creation of a Maine Food Entrepreneurs Resource Council to coordinate programming, feasibility studies for cooperative producer models, targeted investments to expand processing and packaging capacity, and low-barrier grants for sustainability investments.

Holwell also discussed investment trends: she described reported venture-capital flows to Maine startups and said the food sector has begun to attract a share. "Reportedly, more than $3 million in VC has flowed to food startups in our sample; reported VC statewide exceeds $43 million, and in 2023 nearly 20% of Maine startup VC went to food firms," she said, adding that reporting limits mean these figures understate actual investment.

Crossgrove urged stakeholders to review the full report (available via QR code and the Focus Maine website) and invited collaboration on next steps: "None of this can be done alone," she said, pointing attendees to the report's action items and offering to discuss partnership opportunities by email.

The report was funded in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration and developed with research support from CIM Associates. Focus Maine said the framework is intended as a practical set of starting actions rather than a ranked priority list.

The presenters closed by thanking forum speakers, workshop participants and funders and encouraging attendees to use the report for grant proposals, advocacy and program design.