Unity

At 22 years old, he's already been working for years to figure out a way of converting hemp stalks into an efficient-energy product. Now he's on the verge of succeeding at his quest.

The fair, put on by the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, will still take place later this month, though online. It will also offer an online marketplace into January to support the farmers and businesses that usually are part of the event.

The grant recipients range from Ellsworth to Kennebunk, with funded initiatives that include turning food waste into compost and old barn wood into furniture.

The decision to permanently pursue an education model that's not based at a physical campus and gives students more flexibility was spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic, but also looks at future sustainability for the 1,000-student college.

A new program will pay up to $3,500 in closing costs on farmland purchases and may help boost the local food industry, as low interest rates spark interest in agricultural property.

This year's Common Ground Country Fair will be a virtual one. The spread of COVID-19 alters plans for many of Maine's agricultural fairs, some of which date to the early 1800s.

Two Maine post-secondary schools are making it easier for working adults and other students to earn degrees far from campus.

Thomas College is launching the startup mentoring program early next year for entrepreneurs in those counties, as well as five Waldo County towns. The application deadline is next month.

The Unity-based credit union is aimed at closing the $180 million financing gap for states farmers, food producers and other agriculture-related entrepreneurs.

The state's first credit union to open in three decades and the first ever to focus on agriculture, Maine Harvest Federal Credit Union, has received a federal charter.