WPPDC Awarded Funding for Regional Agritourism and Agribusiness Development Program
June 30, 2022
The West Piedmont Planning District Commission (WPPDC) has been awarded funding from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration (EDA) and the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission (TRRC) to launch a Regional Agritourism and Agribusiness Development Program that will collectively market and brand the region’s agritourism and agribusiness sites and activities.
WPPDC Awarded Funding
for Regional Agritourism and Agribusiness Development Program
The
West Piedmont Planning District Commission (WPPDC) has been awarded funding
from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration (EDA)
and the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission (TRRC) to launch a Regional
Agritourism and Agribusiness Development Program that will collectively market
and brand the region’s agritourism and agribusiness sites and activities.The program will identify agricultural businesses
and create a regional inventory, which will include location(s), products and
services offered.The inventory will be
used to create a regional interactive agribusiness website, which will allow
users to search specific products, services, and activities.A group of agritourism and agribusiness
owners and agriculture stakeholders will be formed to guide program development
and sustainability.As a part of the
program the WPPDC will also conduct an Economic Impact Study to determine the
impact of agriculture and agritourism on the region’s economy.While the primary purpose of the study will
be to determine the value of agricultural products and agritourism it will also
include the number of jobs supported by the agriculture sector and an
assessment of future market growth potential.
“During
the development of the West Piedmont Pandemic Recovery and Resiliency Plan some
of our local jurisdictions and partner organizations made us aware of the need
to assist our agritourism and small farm businesses that had suffered
financially during the Covid-19 shutdowns,” said Michael Armbrister, WPPDC
Executive Director.“We have already
worked with some of our Farmers’ Markets and their vendors through other
projects.We are excited to expand on
those relationships with this project while helping them increase their farm
income.”
The
West Piedmont Planning District Commission (WPPDC) is a regional planning
organization serving the counties of Franklin, Henry, Patrick, and
Pittsylvania; the cities of Danville and Martinsville; and the Town of Rocky
Mount. Formed in 1970, the WPPDC is one of twenty-one state designated planning
districts in the Commonwealth of Virginia charged with developing collaborative
regional approaches to issues of greater than local impact including, but not
limited to, economic development, transportation, and legislative priorities.The WPPDC seeks to carry out its mission by
facilitating regional thinking and dialogue among the district’s local governments,
K-12 and higher educational institutions, economic development organizations,
workforce development, and other key stakeholders. ###
