Farmer verified with green program

Published 3:48 pm Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Kenneth Bishop Jr. of Bishop Farms of Union, Mich. recently became Farmstead verified in the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP).

MAEAP is an innovative proactive program that helps farms of all sizes and all commodities voluntary prevent or minimize agriculture pollution risks. It teaches farmers how to identify and prevent environmental risks and to comply with state and federal environmental regulations.

It is a collaborative effort of producers, MDA, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Michigan Farm Bureau, commodity organizations, Michigan State University, conservation groups, and other state and federal agencies. More than 150 local coordinators and technical service providers are available to assist farmers as they move through the MAEAP process towards verification.  To date there are more than 700 farms that have been verified.