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RIDGELY – The Caroline County Farm Bureau named four recipients of $1,000 scholarships on Thursday, July 10, 2025, at the organization’s annual picnic, held for the first time at Cow Barn Events in Ridgely.
Nearly 100 people attended the indoor picnic in the huge barn built in 1911 by Albert and Odella Saulsbury and converted to an event space by Zelle and Marty Collison.
Serving as emcee, board member John Saathoff said the barn was an appropriate, “authentic” space for the picnic catered by The Farmer’s Daughter Barbecue & Catering of Federalsburg.
The scholarship winners will be attending college this fall. They are:
Those eligible for a scholarship were required to be a member or child of a CCFB member. No one applied for the Harry Moreland Scholarship this year.
Also attending the picnic were Caroline County Commission Vice President Larry Porter and Commissioner Frank Bartz, and County Extension Agronomist Dr. Travis Ford.
Saathoff updated members on legislative efforts that produced mixed results during the 2025 Maryland General Assembly.
“There are a couple things that Farm Bureau did accomplish successfully,” Saathoff said. “The PFAS bill was overturned that would have (outlawed) 80% of our fungicides and 40% of our insecticides and herbicides.” Also passed was “a law that the Farm Bureau supported that allows the exceptional hauling permit for farm products.”
Porter briefly reviewed solar energy legislation impacting the county and agriculture land, as well as possible impact fees currently on the drawing board that could be charged to commercial-scale solar companies.
Maryland Farm Bureau Regional Director Marshall Cahall reminded farmers to stay involved in the legislative process.
“As Commissioner Porter mentioned, it's been a very challenging legislative session, and your voice matters, your contacts with the legislature matters,” Cahall said. “And I just can't stress that enough that when Maryland Farm Bureau calls on you, we need to produce a loud voice for these legislators to let them know how we feel. They heard us loud and clear last year, although they didn't choose to agree with our stance on some issues, (but) some issues, they did. But I just can't stress enough how important you guys are and your opinions are as we shape the future of the state of Maryland and the future of Maryland agriculture.”
The CCFB will meet Aug. 18 to develop policies for the Maryland Farm Bureau to consider as it exerts its influence and creates policies for the 2026 Maryland General Assembly.
According to the Maryland Farm Bureau website, Caroline County has 658 farms comprising 150,357 acres.
Agriculture is the largest industry in the county and, according to the USDA’s 2022 statistics, Caroline is the third largest per-acre grain producer in the state, growing 9% of the state’s corn, wheat, barley and soybeans. Caroline’s grain production is only exceeded by Queen Anne’s (12%) and Kent (10%) counties.
The county has 200,000 total acres of agricultural land, 91,000 acres (46%) of which are classified as “prime farmland” by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Prime farmland is soil with the highest productivity for producing food crops “and, thus, is of national importance for preservation as farmland,” according to the commissioners’ letter.
The state of Maryland has classified 50,000 acres (25%) as “farmland of statewide importance” for food production.
