RUMFORD – Directors at Wednesday night’s River Valley Growth Council meeting in the technology center learned a great deal about the power of agriculture as an economic development engine.

Threshold to Maine Resource Conservation and Development Area coordinator Mark Hews of Gray presented a PowerPoint slide show and talk about the River Valley Agriculture Commission and agriculture in general.

In the past, Hews said, agriculture was always considered as a commodity, but now it’s viewed as a business opportunity.

“We’re at a crossroads now,” Hews said. “We can no longer depend on traditional commodities to sustain a viable industry. Commodity no longer works, because we can’t compete nationally or internationally, so, we have to think of creating a different niche or farming diversity. We have to realize that global competition is a reality.”

Agriculture, he said, is part of the primary economy of Oxford County, which had 469 operating farms in 2002 that accounted for a production market value of $14.651 million. Crop sales accounted for $11.216 million and livestock sales, $3.435 million.

“While this value represents both wholesale and retail sales, the ability of local farms to keep more sales dollars is growing,” Hews said.

He suggested that the council sow seeds to create new business opportunities using agriculture as a key business attraction, expansion and retention strategy by cultivating a partnership between agriculture and the business community.

Additionally, the council should encourage the flow of business development and tourism assistance to the agriculture community which, by 2012, is expected to expand by 20 percent, dumping an estimated $3 million into the county’s economy.

Hew said the value of crops sold in the U.S. in 2002 totaled $98 billion. Maine came in at $222 million. He also said that Maine is the nation’s second-largest producer of fresh broccoli behind California, but Maine’s top five agriculture commodities in 2002 were dairy products, potatoes, aquaculture, chicken eggs, and greenhouse/nursery, the fastest growing type of business.

In Oxford County, the top five agricultural opportunities are cattle and calves, other products like hay, dairy products, nursery and greenhouse, and fruits, nuts and berries. The county is also home to one of Maine’s two mink farms.

To achieve the short-term result of expanding economic output, the county needs to increase its agriculture acreage, educate youth, connect farmers with consumers, get towns working together, improve infrastructure, and start a public awareness campaign and technical assistance and training, Hews said.

According to its Web site, Threshold to Maine, which covers the areas of Cumberland, Franklin, Oxford and York counties, is a nonprofit corporation formed in 1970 as part of the Food and Agriculture Act of 1962. Its purpose is to assist communities in York, Cumberland, Oxford, and Franklin Counties improve skills and commitment to balancing social, economic, and ecological issues around natural resource use.