Oct 5, 2015
October 5 Event Features HVADC Client Hepworth Farms, Milton
HUDSON, NY – October 5, 2015 – This morning, Todd Erling, Hudson Valley AgriBusiness Development Corporation (HVADC) Executive Director Todd Erling boarded a bus along with New York Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball, restaurateurs, chefs and press to tour farms and processors in the Hudson Valley as part of the state’s Taste NY Culinary Tour.
The tour kicked off at Hepworth Farms in Milton (Ulster County) a long-time HVADC client which specializes in producing tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, zucchini, cucumbers and many varieties of greens. The seventh-generation family farm has 250 acres of NOFA-certified production land yielding more than 400 varieties of organic vegetables.
“Having Hepworth Farms featured as the lead stop on the tour. Is just further evidence of the reach of some of our programs,” Erling commented prior to the tour. In addition to providing fresh produce, Hepworth Farms also processes and packages its tomatoes using Kingston-based, HVADC client Farm To Table Co-Packers to develop value-add specialty products, runs a CSA, participates in local farmers markets, and is a Hudson Valley Bounty Member.
The Culinary Tour was created as a result of Governor Cuomo’s Upstate-Downstate Summit in an effort to connect restaurateurs with regional producers, and highlight the many opportunities for the sourcing of local foods. Previous tours have been conducted in the Long Island and Finger Lake Regions.
Other stops on today’s Culinary Tour include Bad Seed Cider in Highland (Ulster County) and Hudson Valley Fresh in Wappingers Falls (Dutchess County).
Today’s Taste NY excursion will culminate with a tour of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, where the kick-off event for the fall 2015 Hudson Valley Restaurant Week is being held this evening. Commissioner Ball is expected to make the opening remarks at the Restaurant Week event, when the participants of November 2-15 will be announced.
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About Hudson Valley AgriBusiness Development Corporation (HVADC)The HVADC is the region’s sole economic development agency with a specific focus on the viability of the agricultural economy in the Hudson Valley. It assists both new and existing agri-businesses such as farms, food businesses, and food distributors, by providing technical and business consultation and resources. The non-profit promotes balanced, market-based solutions that lead to enhanced agricultural entrepreneurship, rural economic growth, and community enhancement. Hvadc.org