August 10, 2017

The Department of Agriculture in the U.S. state of Kentucky is engaging with public and private partners to grow its processor, manufacturer, and other agribusinesses sector. Agriculture is a US$46B business in Kentucky, with 154 food manufacturers, 50 nonalcoholic beverage manufacturers, and 34 distilleries all contributing.

“Extremely important for the future growth of Kentucky agriculture is to capture more of the consumer dollar,” said University of Kentucky agriculture economist William Snell. “Agriculture would like to see economic development focus more on attracting more ag-related processors to not only add more value to farm production but also add jobs in rural areas.”

The State plans on touting its infrastructure, low power costs, labor pool and favorable regulatory environment to attract investment ag manufacturing that expands beyond its traditional base of tobacco production and bourbon distilling.