Finger Lakes Farm Country Conference is Feb 23 in Corning

CORNING, NY – This is an open call to local farmers, agricultural producers, farm wineries, breweries and distilleries, as well as restauranteurs, chefs, and distributors. Take advantage of a new and exciting event happening on February 23rd from 8:00am-4:00pm at Corning Community College. The event, Finger Lakes Farm Country Conference, is the first-ever undertaking by Finger Lakes Farm Country (a special collaboration between 10 organizations from Tioga, Chemung, Steuben, Schuyler, and Yates Counties) in an effort to connect local farms, food and beverage producers with new markets. The conference is intended to be a business-to-business event, and is being sponsored by Taste NY.

The Finger Lakes Farm Country Conference is a chance for local farmers, producers, and businesses to get together, learn about each other’s products, and network. There is also an educational component to the event, as there will be three panel discussions and a keynote speaker (Dr. Sophie Winter, Assistant Professor of Agribusiness from SUNY Cobleskill).
Dr. Winter’s presentation is titled “Developing your Entrepreneurship Potential in Agritourism” and will focus on “best practices for anyone interested in diversifying their farm revenue stream. Welcoming the public on site and adding an extra activity to the operation requires specific considerations for which the entrepreneur will need to plan.”

The panels will consist of experts (including Taste NY representatives, Executive Directors for Cornell Cooperative Extension, the Publisher for Edible Finger Lakes, Destination Marketing Directors, Restaurant Managers, etc.) discussing: “The State of Agritourism in the Southern Finger Lakes;” “Being Visitor Ready;” and “Farm-to-Restaurant – Developing connections and building working relationships.”

Local farmers, agribusinesses, producers, farm wineries, farm breweries, farm distilleries, as well as chefs and restauranteurs are encouraged to take advantage of this unique networking opportunity and educational event. There is a registration fee of $50 for anyone wishing to participate in the conference. Registration includes admission, panel discussions, keynote presentation, networking break out sessions, as well as a locally-sourced breakfast, and farm-to-table lunch.

The Finger Lakes Farm Country Conference is the first of two events at CCC presented by the Finger Lakes Farm Country (FLFC) initiative. Following the Finger Lakes Farm Country Conference, from 5-8pm the second part of the day Taste FLXpo will take place giving local food lovers a chance to learn about and sample delicious locally-grown food, wine and craft beverages. There will also be a farmer’s market at the Taste FLXpo where the public can purchase locally-sourced food and beverage to take home.

To learn more about the Finger Lakes Farm Country Conference or to register, visit FingerLakesFarmCountry.com or go to https://flxfarmcountry.ticketleap.com/conference/details.

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