Fifth season of MPT’s Maryland Farm & Harvest premieres Nov. 14

OWINGS MILLS, MD – Maryland Public Television’s (MPT) popular original series Maryland Farm & Harvest premieres for its fifth season on November 14 with the first of 13 new half-hour episodes airing on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. on MPT-HD.

Each week, Maryland Farm & Harvest takes viewers on a journey across the state, telling stories about the farms, people, and technology required to sustain and grow Maryland’s number one industry: agriculture. Over the past year, MPT’s production team has filmed stories at more than four dozen farms in preparation for the new season. Maryland’s rich agricultural heritage, the importance of bees, and growing crops in the face of changing weather patterns are among themes covered in depth during upcoming episodes.

Approximately four million viewers have tuned in to Maryland Farm & Harvest since its fall 2013 debut. The series has taken MPT viewers to more than 200 farms during its first four seasons, covering every Maryland county, as well as Baltimore City and Washington, D.C.

Joanne Clendining, who earned an Emmy® from the National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for her work as Maryland Farm & Harvest host, returns for season five. She is joined by Al Spoler, co-host of WYPR-FM’s “Cellar Notes” and “Radio Kitchen” programs, who hosts The Local Buy segment during each episode.

Maryland Farm & Harvest airs on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. on MPT-HD and is rebroadcast on Thursdays at 11:30 p.m. and Sundays at 6 a.m. Each show also airs on MPT2 on Fridays at 7:30 p.m. More information about the series is available at mpt.org/farm, and viewers can join the conversation on social media at the hashtag #MDFarmHavestFans.

Agriculture is Maryland’s largest commercial industry, contributing more than $17 billion in revenue each year. As of 2016 approximately 350,000 Marylanders are employed in some aspect of agriculture. The state has 12,300 farms accounting for approximately two million acres, with nearly 6,000 full-time farmers. Today, 110 farms and more than 7,679 acres are certified organic in Maryland.

The Maryland Department of Agriculture is MPT's co-production partner for Maryland Farm & Harvest. Major funding is provided by the Maryland Grain Producers Utilization Board.

Additional funding is provided by Maryland's Best; MidAtlantic Farm Credit; the Maryland Agricultural Resource-Based Industry Development Corporation; the Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation; and the Maryland Soybean Board.

Other support comes from Wegmans Food Markets; the Maryland Nursery, Landscape & Greenhouse Association; the Delmarva Poultry Industry, Inc.; the University of Maryland Agriculture Law Education Initiative; the Maryland Association of Soil Conservation Districts; the Maryland Farm Bureau Service Company, and by Mar-Del Watermelon Association; Hoffman Irrigation, LLC, an authorized Valley Irrigation dealer; Chesapeake College; and the Rural Maryland Council.

About MPT
Launched in 1969 and headquartered in Owings Mills, MD, Maryland Public Television is a nonprofit, state-licensed public television network and member of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). MPT’s six transmitters cover Maryland plus portions of contiguous states and the District of Columbia. Frequent winner of regional Emmy® awards, MPT creates local, regional, and national television shows. Beyond broadcast, MPT’s commitment to professional educators, parents, caregivers, and learners of all ages is delivered through year-round instructional events and the super-website Thinkport, which garners in excess of 19 million page views annually. MPT’s community engagement connects viewers with local resources on significant health, education, and public interest topics through year-round outreach events, viewer forums, program screenings, and phone bank call-in opportunities.

# # #