Agriculture

The majority owners of Charlton-based Tree House Brewing have responded to a November lawsuit filed by an individual with a minority stake in the company, claiming the passive investor has been well compensated for his initial $10,000 investment and denying allegations of wrongdoing made in his lawsuit. 

Regulating artificial intelligence, creating an agricultural disaster relief fund and boosting food security emerged as areas of focus that lawmakers could tackle in 2024 following a batch of committee votes.

Chaos would probably be a fitting description for the cannabis industry in general during 2023 and don’t expect that chaos to dissipate in 2024.

Feedback Earth, a Grafton-based company converting food waste into animal feed, has been fined again by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection for state permit violations.

The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife said deer densities vary widely from an ideal range of about 12–18 deer per square mile in most of central and western Massachusetts to more than 30–50 deer per square mile in areas of eastern Massachusetts and on the islands, where hunting access is restricted.

While the first five years saw more than $5 billion in sales and hundreds of businesses opening, uncertainty awaits ahead for the next five years.

Nichols College in Dudley has entered a partnership with Pocasset Pokanoket Land Trust, an Indigenous-led nonprofit, to offer a farming financial literacy course for farmers across New England. 

Lancaster-based Deershorn Farm and Taxidermy has received a $45,000 working capital loan from the North Central Massachusetts Development Corp. in Fitchburg. 

Pioneer Valley farms that were flooded out during July will soon receive $10,000 checks from a fundraising campaign launched by the Healey administration and United Way of Central Massachusetts last month.

Companies are sounding the alarm on the state’s inconsistent product safety testing standards.