YORK COUNTY, Pa. — Harrisburg University of Science and Technology has a space for controlled environmental agriculture, otherwise known as vertical farming.
However, the space isn’t very big. That’s why the university is looking to branch out.
“This is all to really create better food, create greater sustainability and access. So we’ve been focusing on that in York County,” said Ryan Riley, the vice president of advancement.
Patrick Ball, the interim CEO of York County Agricultural Society, says conversations between the university and YCAS began earlier this year about a potential partnership.
“Harrisburg University expressed a desire for a larger urban space that was flat and would be welcoming to agriculture, sort of the next generation of agriculture,” Ball said.
The partnership would allow the university to share its agro-tech with the fairgrounds, utilizing thousands of square feet already available and be the first of its kind.
Ball says a partnership would benefit York County as well as surrounding municipalities.
Discussions of potential additions to the fairgrounds have already started.
“It provides a long-term financial benefit for the organization in the form of a land lease. But probably more importantly, it really helps us be at the forefront of agricultural innovation,” Ball said.
The York County Fair would also be the ideal venue to showcase the advances in agriculture technology.
“One of the most important pieces in agriculture is a combination of the audience and the awareness,” Riley said.
“The potential is to have people coming in internationally to look at our model,” Ball added.
A decision about the partnership could be announced by late spring.