WILMINGTON – Second Chances Farm (SCF) called the event the Ladybug Launch Dedication, as 10,000 ladybugs shared the new 47,500-square-foot facility with around 300 attendees and 13 speakers on the agenda. SCF Founder Ajit Mathew George sees a future where state or federal inmates from Delaware will have farming jobs — and futures as entrepreneurs…
Agriculture has long been Delaware’s single largest land use, so it’s no surprise that the sector is a strong focus for First State innovators. A potent mix of startups, researchers and established agribusiness companies works to protect the crops that Delaware’s farmers cultivate and to ensure agriculture has a bright future. A prime example is…
The Produce Marketing Association (PMA) is a global trade association representing the fresh produce and floral supply chains. Founded in 1949, the organization is based in Newark (55 of its 87 employees are in Delaware), but it has a truly global footprint, with members in more than 40 countries, including China, Chile, South Africa, Brazil…
Back in 2011, Allen Family Foods went through bankruptcy and was purchased by the Harim Group, based in South Korea. In 2014, the firm rebranded as Allen Harim Foods. In 2016, Joe Moran became CEO. And this year, the nearly 100-year-old poultry producer is making more moves. “We’re in a growth mode right now,” Moran…
Agriculture — from farming to food production — has long been a mainstay of Delaware’s economy. It’s the state’s single largest land use, with just under 40 percent of land devoted to agricultural production. And thanks to support from Delaware’s solid research infrastructure, both at the corporate and university level, First State farmers benefit from…
When decision-makers at Milwaukee, Wis.-based Proximity Malt went on the hunt for a Mid-Atlantic location, they struck gold on the Delmarva Peninsula. An abandoned feed mill in Laurel boasted concrete bins that were perfect for the company’s purposes. But the malt company, which was started in 2015, appreciated the area for more than the storage tanks. “Delaware…
At a sprawling plant along the Indian River in Millsboro, through three shifts on seven days a week, employees at Merck Animal Health manufacture vaccines and other pharmaceutical products for cats, dogs, pigs and cows. But like so much of the agriculture industry here in the First State, Merck’s biggest customer is the poultry industry.…
Perdue Farms, Perdue Foods and Perdue Agribusiness have more than 6,000 employees in Delaware, according to recent numbers from the company. Perdue also works with more than 500 poultry farmers and over 400 grain farmers here. The nearly 100-year-old firm estimates its annual economic impact in the state at just over $1 billion. Its…
As Delaware’s Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Scuse is charged with helping the agricultural industry grow and thrive. He has witnessed farmers using advanced technology to improve outcomes and make farms more efficient. Here, he answers some questions about the state’s agriculture climate. What does the pending merger of DuPont and Dow mean for agriculture in…
Bobby Fifer is part of the fourth generation of his family running Fifer Orchards in Camden- Wyoming, Del., so he pays a lot of attention to tradition and the methods that have helped the farm grow since its 1919 inception. But that doesn’t mean he and the rest of the team aren’t looking ahead too.…
