Attendees from Sullivan and surrounding counties congregate at the trade show for the Farm to Market Connection conference held at the CVI building on March 25. The conference, organized by the Pure Catskills Buy Local Campaign, featured keynote speaker Chris Fowler of Syracuse First, who discussed the importance of localization vs. globalization with regard to small businesses in general and agriculture in particular, and a “transformational, not transactional” paradigm of economic development that targets community building as well as economic growth.

In other featured events during the day, the Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress conducted a listening session to hear what impediments local farmers and their customers are experiencing in the distribution of fresh local products and what kind of infrastructure investments, such as food hubs, might solve these problems; a series of workshops focused on topics from cooperative marketing initiatives to agri-tourism; and consultants provided one-on-one expert advice to attendees on an appointment basis.