By KENNEDY GRIFFIN
(Hatfield, MA) ServiceNet’s Prospect Meadow Farm in Hatfield broke ground Tuesday, marking the beginning of a renovation and expansion project. The farmhouse will be turned into a modern Vocational Training and Production Center for additional work crews of at least 10 to 12 new jobs for culinary and carpentry production.
The project has received almost $600,000 in capital grant funding and currently running a fundraising campaign to help with upgrade costs. Prospect Meadow Farm currently employs 80 farmhands, many with developmental disabilities and chronic mental health challenges. Along with paid employment, the farm provides therapeutic support and vocational training. They even provide transportation for employees that need it as some travel from rural areas in the region.
The farm is the largest producer of log-grown shiitake mushrooms in western Massachusetts and they have seven acres of vegetables, along with egg-laying chickens, goats, pigs, alpacas, ducks, and rabbits. Their food goes to their farm stand and retail site, supplies over 100 CSA (community supported agriculture) farm shares, brings food to over 20 group homes, and supplies local grocery stores and restaurants. Some of the proceeds from the food sales go to subsidizing farm shares for low-income, disabled, and elderly individuals.
The upgrades to the farm will include a commercial production kitchen, expanding classrooms and offices, carpentry workshop, bathrooms, and an outdoor pavilion.