Current News

Agency of Transportation Road Construction Report Week of August 15, 2022. This weekly report is a list of planned construction activities that will have traffic impacts on state highways throughout Vermont. Please remember to drive safely in all work zones. Lives depend on it.

Vermont Business Magazine Award-winning creamery Consider Bardwell Farm is once again making its soft-ripened, washed-rind cow’s milk Dorset cheese in its initial format - a 2.5-lb wheel -, allowing cheese and specialty shops to offer freshly sliced portions to their customers. Beneath a delicate, orange-hued rind, this pasteurized cheese offers a rich and buttery taste and texture, punctuated with an earthy complexity. With notes of green olive and a depth of savory flavor referred to as “brothy,” Dorset has been noted for its “umami,” which means “essence of deliciousness” in Japanese.

Vermont Business Magazine The ten best days of summer are just around the corner and the Champlain Valley Fair is turning 100. From its beginnings in 1922 when the Champlain Valley Exposition formed to today, we’ve kept true to time-honored traditions and grown into Vermont’s largest annual event. Visitors to the fair have numerous opportunities to learn about Vermont’s agricultural economy, enjoy amazing foods from over 60 food vendors, find their thrill on the Midway with more than 40 rides available, and plenty of free entertainment.

Vermont Business Magazine The 33rd edition of the Annie E Casey Foundation's KIDS COUNT Data Book describes how children in America are in the midst of a mental health crisis, struggling with anxiety and depression at unprecedented levels. Vermont ranked 5th overall. The state ranked best in the Health (3rd) and Community (3rd) categories, was 5th in Education and 12th in Economic Well-Being. New England states continued to hold the top two spots in overall child well-being. Massachusetts ranks first again, followed by New Hampshire, Minnesota, Utah and Vermont. At the other end of the list: New Mexico ranked worst in child well-being followed by Louisiana (49th) and Mississippi (48th).

Vermont Business Magazine The ‘Green Mountain Digital Archive’ (VT-GMDA) is a collaborative statewide initiative to bring Vermont’s digital cultural content to a highly visible national platform, the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA). Big Heavy World, with the generous expert support of staff at Middlebury College, recently channeled digital images of approximately 5,000 Vermont-made musical recordings into this national digital collection. The holdings of Big Heavy World’s Vermont Music Library — a large cross-section of Vermont’s music history — is now visible through images and catalog data worldwide. DPLA is an all-digital nonprofit library that aggregates metadata from libraries, museums, and archives around the country. It is free for public use.

Vermont Business Magazine Today the Vermont Secretary of State’s office announced the postponing of the canvassing of the 2022 State Senate and County Office Primary Election results due to technology issues as a result of Legislative redistricting. The canvassing was scheduled for 10 a.m. this morning and a rescheduled time will be announced later today. The Election Management System software contractor continues to work on a solution to be able to produce reports based on the official return of votes submitted by the Clerks.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (VAAFM) is pleased to announce that the Farm Service Agency (FSA) of the USDA has awarded $412,550 to the State of Vermont as a part of the Organic Certification Cost Share Program. The application is now open for certified operations to apply for these funds. Application deadline is November 1, 2022.

Vermont Business Magazine The annual Southern Vermont Summer Homebrew Festival brought the heat this past weekend to Bennington, Vermont! The festival was held on the field in front of the Bennington Sports Center, formerly the Catamount School. Hot temperatures reaching over 90 degrees couldn’t scare away the crowds as over 350 patrons enjoyed 100 craft home brews from over 24 homebrewers. From noon to 4pm ticket holders enjoyed unlimited samples of home-brewed beer, wine, mead, cider and more from the area's best homebrewers.

Vermont Business Magazine Bar Harbor Bank & Trust employees recently presented nearly $12,000 in donations from the Bank’s employee-driven charitable giving program, Casual for A Cause, to six nonprofit organizations in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The recipients of the donations, all of which were collected in Q2 2022, are: Hospice Volunteers of Hancock County, Island Health & Wellness Foundation, People Plus, and Trekkers (Maine); Lake Sunapee Region VNA & Hospice (New Hampshire); and Changing Perspectives Inc. (Vermont).

“Our employees are passionate about helping our neighbors, whether that’s through supporting initiatives to expand health care services or by empowering young people to become positive agents of change,” said Jack Frost, VP Director of Community Giving at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust. “Every dollar donated through Casual for a Cause is a testament to our employees’ commitment to creating stronger communities for all.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Association of Hospitals and Health Systems (VAHHS) urged the Green Mountain Care Board (GMCB) to approve their budgets as submitted as they prepare for hospital-by-hospital hearings with the regulatory body beginning next week. Hospitals are calling their fiscal year 2023 budget request “stabilization budgets,” as continued staffing shortages and high demand for care and historic inflation stress the system almost to a breaking point.