Ag secretary announces $1 million grant program at Pa. Farm Show
If agriculture is to remain one of Pennsylvania’s top industries, then farms have to succeed as businesses.
That was the message at the Pennsylvania Farm Show’s Public Officials Day in Harrisburg, where Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding announced the latest grant to be funded by the 2019 Farm Bill.
The $1 million Farm Vitality Grant Program will help fund professional services for those planning for the future of a farm, he said.
“We need Pennsylvania farm families to have sound business plans, because their success is Pennsylvania’s success,” Redding said.
The grant program, administered through the Agriculture Business Development Center, will focus on sound business planning, efficient transitions of farm ownership, strategic farm expansion, diversification of agricultural production, and financial and technical expertise, Redding said.
The program is funded by the $23.1 million Pennsylvania Farm Bill signed into law by Gov. Tom Wolf last year.
Among those invited to speak at Public Officials Day was Jason Frye of Pleasant Lane Farms, a dairy farm near Pleasant Unity.
The farm received a grant from the Pennsylvania Dairy Investment Program last year to add cheese making to its operations. In August, the farm broke ground on a facility that will house robotic milking, cheese-making operations and a learning lab.
Also addressing Public Officials Day as an “Inspiring Innovator” was Leah Lizarondo, CEO and co-founder of 412 Food Rescue in Pittsburgh. Nearly 800 public officials attended the event.
“Those with us today have the opportunity to make a difference in their communities and awaken the entrepreneurial spirit of farmers,” Redding said. “The Pennsylvania Farm Bill is both a strategic investment in the industry and a resource for local government.”
Agriculture and its associated industries contribute more than $135 billion, or about 18%, to Pennsylvania’s economy. The industry involves more than a half-million workers, including 280,500 direct jobs.
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