Kersbergen quoted in Press Herald report on local, grass-fed meat

UMaine Alert

Posted: April 19, 2024 - 1:32 PM

At approximately 9:24 a.m. on Friday, April 19, a University of Maine graduate student was struck by a university vehicle on Long Road at the University of Maine campus in Orono. The student reports that they are at a local hospital with minor injuries.

Emergency services, including the Orono Fire Department, University Volunteer Ambulance Corps, University of Maine Police Department, Orono Police Department and Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene.

The university vehicle involved in the incident was a Chevrolet Express van. It was being operated by a university employee.

Counseling services and support are available for students, faculty or staff who may have been affected. The Counseling Center can be reached at 207-581-1392 and the Dean of Students Office can be reached at 207-581-1406.

The scene has been cleared and Long Road is now accessible. An investigation is being conducted by the University of Maine Police Department with assistance from the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office Crash Reconstruction Unit. Any witnesses to the incident are encouraged to contact Lt. Noel Santiago at noel.santiago@maine.edu.

August 31, 2015 Cooperative Extension, UMaine in the News

Richard Kersbergen, a University of Maine Cooperative Extension educator on sustainable dairy and forage systems, was quoted in the Portland Press Herald article, “Backing up claims about local and grass-fed meat,” as part of the “Green Plate Special” column. According to a letter drafted this summer by the Maine Grass Farmers Network to retailers, restaurants and institutions that sell and serve locally sourced meat and poultry, learning where meat was born, raised and slaughtered isn’t always easy, the article states. As the demand for local proteins has increased, so have the instances of distributors and farmers misrepresenting the products they sell, the letter claims. The letter lays out steps retailers, restaurateurs and institutional buyers should take, including that all meat and poultry purchased should come with a USDA or ME state approved label. Any value-added claims made about the product on the label can be listed only if the claims have been evaluated and found to be true by inspection, according to the article. “There is a significant paper trail in place. It’s a matter of educating buyers at all levels how to use it,” Kersbergen said.