FARMINGTON – Area farmers who are working to keep their farmland in agricultural use are invited to a special program to be held from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 13, at the West Farmington Grange Hall.

Gary Anderson, dairy management specialist with the Cooperative Extension, will provide an overview of the importance of planning when transferring the farm to the next generation, and George Richardson, a certified public accountant with Austin Associates, will follow-up with a discussion on the tax benefits of keeping land in farming.

The meeting, which has been organized by Maine Farmland Trust and is free and open to all, is believed to be the first of its kind for farmers in Franklin County, said Bussie York of Sandy River Farms and the Franklin County Soil and Water Conservation District.

Also on the program are John Piotti and Esther Lacognata of Maine Farmland Trust, which organized the workshop in its ongoing statewide effort to preserve Maine farmland.

MFT Executive Director Piotti will speak about the trust’s efforts to save 100,000 acres of Maine farmland in the next five years.

Lacognata will describe how MFT’s Maine FarmLink program matches up farmland seekers with owners who are selling their farms.

The meeting is co-sponsored by the Franklin County Soil and Water Conservation District and Maine Cooperative Extension, Franklin County Office with assistance from the Farm Service Agency in Franklin County.

For more information, please contact York at 778-3835 or Jo Josephson at 778-2021.