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Nourse Farms’ main location in Whately. The farm’s croplands nearly surround River Valley Growers in neighboring Hatfield.
STAFF FILE PHOTO
HATFIELD — Cannabis cultivator River Valley Growers of Hatfield is suing neighboring Whately berry farm Nourse Farms for $17 million for allegedly contaminating thousands of pounds of crops with “negligent” spraying of pesticides.
The $17 million being sought comes from a harvest lost to contamination with an estimated value of $7 million, and two subsequent years during which River Valley Growers claims it was unable to grow crops as a result of the contamination and ongoing investigations.
“This case is about the ruination of a small farm by the repeated negligence of a large, multi-state plant producer and supplier,” the complaint reads.
Attorney Timothy Swain of Vicente LLP in Boston, who is representing River Valley Growers, said the saga began in 2022, a year after River Valley Growers opened, when the 47,000-pound crop harvested tested positive for pesticides. This was a surprise, as River Valley Growers never used pesticides on its crops, which were intended to be distilled into cannabis oils and concentrates.
Because of the strict laws regarding the presence of pesticides in cannabis crops, this prompted an investigation by the state Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR). The investigation concluded that the contamination had originated from neighboring Nourse Farms, which nearly surrounds River Valley Growers.
Swain said that laws regarding pesticide use are clear: “You have to use them so that they do not drift onto anybody else’s property.”
Pesticides found on River Valley Growers’ crops that were recorded in Nourse Farms’ spray logs were Brigade WSB, Rally 40WSP and Zeal WDG. Other pesticides used by Nourse Farms were found in samples taken elsewhere on River Valley Farms’ property as well.
Swain said Nourse Farms appealed MDAR’s findings, leading to a subsequent investigation that yielded the same results, and despite efforts to settle out of court, “the other side just wasn’t interested in resolving it.”
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Nourse Farms declined to comment on the case.
Swain explained that the contaminated crops were ordered to be destroyed in accordance with the law. But because the contaminated crops had to be stored as evidence in the ongoing investigations, Swain said River Valley Growers was unable to grow in 2023 or 2024 — and possibly this year — because the contaminated crops are taking up all of the freezer space where the cultivators store the crops after harvesting.
MDAR and the Cannabis Control Commission have required that River Valley Growers continue to hold the product as evidence.
During the fall of 2023, Swain said, a neighbor captured video evidence of Nourse Farms spraying a “big cloud” of pesticides over its crops that drifted onto River Valley Growers’ property. At that time, though, River Valley Growers was still not cultivating crops due to its lack of storage space.
In addition to compensation for the damaged crops and losses from two years without growing, as well as a resolution to the pesticide issue, Swain said River Valley Growers is seeking the green light from a judge to destroy the contaminated crops without being at risk for destroying evidence in an investigation. According to the complaint, being unable to grow crops in 2025 “would likely strike a fatal blow to what remains” of the farm.
“Our first priority in this case in the short term is to ask the judge to sort of broker an agreement between the two sides to destroy the crops and get back to growing,” said Swain.
In addition to Nourse Farms, the suit lists Ashley Randle in her capacity as commissioner of MDAR, Bruce Stebbins in his capacity as acting chair of the Cannabis Control Commission, and the Cannabis Control Commission itself as defendants.
River Valley Growers is seeking a declaratory judgment that would allow for the destruction of the 2022 harvest so the farm could use its storage space again. Swain said the farm has already submitted a plan for destruction and that this would be a final step, aside from scheduling a date for the disposal to take place.
River Valley Growers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Alexa Lewis can be reached at alewis@gazettenet.com.
“}]] HATFIELD — Cannabis cultivator River Valley Growers of Hatfield is suing neighboring Whately berry farm Nourse Farms for $17 million for allegedly contaminating thousands of pounds of crops with “negligent” spraying of pesticides. Read More
