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Southern Maryland ag commission proposes regional Ag Business Park and Food Innovation Center; legislation would allow land acquisition
Summary
SMADAC presented a proposal on May 5 to develop an Ag Business Park and Food Innovation Center using cigarette restitution funds, seeking to provide incubation, processing, distribution and value-added facilities for Southern Maryland farmers.
The Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission (SMADAC) briefed the county commissioners on May 5 on a proposed Ag Business Park and Food Innovation Center intended to scale local farm production, processing and distribution across the five-county Southern Maryland region.
Dr. Christine Bergmark, SMADAC executive director, and farmer and board member Eddie Bowling presented the proposal and said the project would be funded primarily from cigarette restitution (tobacco settlement) funds administered through the Tri-County Council, supplemented by federal and foundation sources. "The funds are existing they exist through 2025, and we would hope that we would continue to receive some of those funds," Bergmark told commissioners.
SMADAC outlined project components: land/central site acquisition or a distributed series of sites; a new-farmer incubation program; a food-distribution center and refrigerated warehouse; a food-innovation center…
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