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BOXFORD AGRICULTURAL COMMISSION

The Boxford Agricultural Commission is composed of five members. These members are
recommended by the Commission for appointment by the Board of Selectmen.
Membership consists of two commercial agricultural enterprise operators (landowner or
lessee) or individuals from related professions and industries, with the primary goal of
promoting commercial agriculture. One of the remaining positions must be
representative of Boxford’s recreational farming community and the two remaining
positions are appointed at-large. The Commission must represent diversity of farming
within the Town of Boxford. The terms are staggered three year appointments. The right
to recommend further members of the Agricultural Commission is reserved by the
Commission with the intent to be representative of the diversity and scale of agriculture
within the Town of Boxford. In addition, up to five nonvoting associate members shall
be selected by the Commission for a term of one year to represent Town boards and
farming interests.

The Commission holds monthly recorded meetings, generally on the first Tuesday of the
month at 7:30 PM. The public is welcome to participate.

The Boxford Agricultural Commission, this year, continued its focus to promote
agriculture by maintaining educational topics in its meetings and special program
presentations. Such topics included: invasive plant and animal species and how we can
deal (or not) with them; pesticides: appropriate use and misuse; protecting our
pollinators; management of the land we have acquired. For example, the Commission is
pursuing a new State initiative called The Forest Stewardship Program. This is a cost-
sharing program to manage woodlands for timber and wildlife. This year we met with
the Selectmen and the Forestry Committee. Enthusiasm was dampened by funding. So
the project is currently in limbo. We will continue to pursue this endeavor and funding.

Boxford Commissioners continue to be a statewide leader within the Massachusetts
Association of Agricultural Commissions of which several members hold key executive
positions and are a principal participant for Ag Day at the State House. Several
members also were major contributors to the March Annual Meeting of the
Massachusetts Association of Agricultural Commissions and also travelled statewide
educating other commissions on municipal agricultural issues. This year, the MAAC
conducted several statewide educational “Bootcamps” along with the Chief Apiary
Inspector and the Pesticide Commission Director to address the problems of honeybees
and other pollinators.