SOUTHBOROUGH — The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) today announced its new MassGrownWellness program (MGW), which is designed to address the mental health and wellness needs of those within the Massachusetts agricultural community and its supporters. The program specifically targets issues directly impacting the Commonwealth’s farmers, agricultural stakeholders, and other farming community organizations, such as financial difficulties, depression, and other issues. Through MGW, MDAR will provide the community with critical resources to enhance their access to mental health services.

“Massachusetts farmers pride themselves on their ability to produce healthy, high-quality crops and livestock, but unfortunately, they often overlook their own mental health and well-being,” said MDAR Commissioner John Lebeaux. “MDAR recognizes the specific challenges facing our agricultural community, its supporters, and stakeholders, and is committed to providing resources that address their unique mental health and wellbeing, including those of veterans and our underserved black, indigenous, and people of color farming network.”

As part of the program, MDAR will launch free MWG in-person and online interactive training and discussion seminars beginning in January 2023. The sessions are designed to deliver a broader understanding and raise awareness about mental health, self-care, and unique stressors that affect farmers, farming families, work colleagues, and organizations that support the Massachusetts agricultural community. Attendees will receive mental health resource toolkits developed by MDAR and review critical skills needed to effectively engage farmers in the field. These toolkits will enable farmers and growers to recognize when they are under an unhealthy amount of stress, better understand how these stressors impact their mental health and well-being, learn how to start perceived difficult conversations regarding emotional well-being, and become aware of the resources available to them to help address these stress points in their lives.

“The Department of Mental Health applauds the creation of MassGrownWellness, and several other initiatives across the state, which focus on bringing mental health care to people when and where they need it," said Massachusetts Department of Mental Health (DMH) Commissioner Brooke Doyle. “Farmers and their families are among the traditionally underserved communities that we are working to offer easily accessible care to.”

MGW is centered around best practices for self-care, de-escalation, and active listening skills as effective tools for people who aren’t mental health professionals. It will provide direct access to resources on the MDAR website, including free online mental health screenings to assess symptoms of a possible underlying conditions, access to community-based resources, and information about 24/7 emergency/crisis line services.

The MassGrownWellness Program is the result of a comprehensive web-based survey of statewide farmers and agricultural community stakeholders that identified the most pressing concerns facing members of this community. 85% of respondents reported some level of mental health impact as a result of working in the agricultural sector. The survey results informed MDAR’s approach by clarifying how farmers and other agricultural community members access mental health resources, the challenges they face when seeking care, and the reasons why some may resist outreach to providers.

It's been shown that unaddressed stress correlates with chronic mental health, wellness, and family and business complications and difficulty. Through MGW, MDAR is committed to providing language, context, and resources to enhance mental health conversations around a wide range of issues, including financial concerns, alcohol or substance abuse disorders, depression, and more.

For more information on the MassGrownWellness program (MGW), please visit the program’s webpage.

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