WELCOME
Vitality in the Valley: Farm to Factory is an annual Manufacturing Expo that brings together New York State companies across the food, beverage, agriculture, and manufacturing ecosystems.
The event creates meaningful connections between producers, manufacturers, suppliers, and the technical and business resources that help companies grow, scale, and innovate.
Designed to foster collaboration from farm to factory floor, Vitality in the Valley highlights the intersection of agriculture, food and beverage, and advanced manufacturing, offering participants a focused environment to explore partnerships, discover solutions, and strengthen regional supply chains.
Be A Part of the Exclusive Reception – June 2, 2026
In addition to the expo, exhibitors, sponsors, and event partners are invited to an exclusive evening reception on June 2, 2026. This invitation-only event highlights the region’s food and beverage ecosystem through thoughtfully curated pairings from local restaurants, breweries, wineries, and producers.
The reception provides a welcoming environment for early introductions, meaningful conversations, and strategic connections ahead of the expo.
June 2-3, 2026
Location:
Herkimer College
100 Lou Ambers Drive
Herkimer, NY 13350
Lodging Options
The Red Roof Inn
100 Marginal Road,
Herkimer, NY 13350
(315)866-0490
Call and book under “FuzeHub” Room Block
Hampton Inn Utica
172 – 180 N Genesee Street,
Utica, NY 13502
(315)733-1200
We are seeking companies that have something to crow about. Exhibiting at Vitality in the Valley is a unique opportunity to showcase and sell your products and services to a targeted audience of manufacturers, growers, processors, and ecosystem partners from across New York State.
We’re welcoming exhibitors from food, beverage, agriculture, and manufacturing to ensure strong representation across sectors. This is your chance to connect directly with customers, collaborators, and potential partners while positioning your business within a growing innovation-driven community.
Exhibiting goes beyond visibility—it’s an opportunity to generate sales, build relationships, and grow your brand. You’ll be able to:
- Showcase and sell your products to a wide audience of attendees, buyers, and media
- Connect directly with new customers and generate real-time sales
- Network at our exclusive evening reception on June 2 with other top-tier NYS businesses
- Gain exposure through FuzeHub’s marketing channels
We’re building a vibrant mix of exhibitors, and we want your industry represented. If you’ve been thinking about signing up, now’s the time to lock in your spot and be part of a dynamic event that brings farm-grown goods and factory-built solutions under one roof. Apply to Exhibit here.
We offer a range of sponsorship opportunities for organizations looking to show their support and gain meaningful visibility at Vitality in the Valley. All sponsors receive logo recognition on our website and in email promotions, verbal acknowledgment during the event, and access to our exclusive pre-event reception.
Sponsorship levels range from Bronze to Gold, with higher tiers including speaking opportunities, exhibit space, and enhanced brand exposure. Breakfast and Lunch sponsorships also provide valuable stage time during key networking moments. Sponsoring Vitality in the Valley is a powerful way to connect with industry leaders, elevate your brand, and support the growth of New York State’s food, beverage, agriculture, and manufacturing sectors.
Vitality in the Valley 2025











AGENDA
June 2, 2026 - Day One
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3:00 PM
Exhibitor Setup Begins
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5:30 PM
Networking Reception
June 3, 2026 - Day Two
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7:30 AM
Doors Open
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8:00 AM
Registration & Breakfast
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8:30 AM
Event Begins
Welcome Addresses & Sponsors
- Dr. Everton H. Henriques – FuzeHub (MC)
- Cory Albrecht – AIM
- Bill McDonald – Herkimer College
- John Piseck – Herkimer IDA
- Dr. Scott Ferguson – The Institute for Rural Vitality at SUNY Cobleskill
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9:00 AM
Morning Keynote
- Frank Elias – President & Founder, Utica Coffee
- Dan Rickman – District Director, SBA
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9:45 AM
Exhibitor Showcase
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11:15 AM
Panel Breakout
- Moderator – Allison Madmoune, Regional Director Mohawk Valley Region Empire State Development
- Keri Pratico, Vice President and Senior Business Development Officer at Pursuit
- Patty Rechberger, Innovation Fund Manager, FuzeHub
- Grace Conners, Deputy District Director for the Syracuse District Office U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)
- Tim Fitzgerald, Senior Vice President, Economic Development, Mohawk Valley EDGE
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12:15 PM
Lunch
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1:15 PM
Exhibitor Showcase
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3:00 PM
Event Ends
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
SPEAKERS & PANELISTS
EXHIBITOR GUIDE
Garlic Delite Farm LLC
OrbitalFire Cybersecurity
OrbitalFire is an award-winning provider of NIST 171, CMMC readiness, and other cybersecurity services tailored for small manufacturers. A CPO, we are trusted by a community of thousands to protect you from cybercrime, audits, regulations, and yourself—without the complexity and high price tags.
Our team of certified, values-driven professionals is laser-focused on your results. We are independently recognized for making cybersecurity simpler, stronger, and smarter for smaller businesses.
NextBLDG Architecture & Engineering, P.C.
NEXTBLDG is a multidisciplinary architecture and engineering firm delivering high‑performance, code‑compliant solutions for New York’s manufacturing, agricultural, and food‑processing sectors. We specialize in facility assessments, structural and MEP engineering, adaptive reuse, and energy‑efficient design. Through standardized, audit‑ready workflows, NEXTBLDG helps organizations modernize operations, expand capacity, and build safe, future‑ready facilities that accelerate growth from concept to construction.
Giotto Enterprises
Giotto Enterprises is the umbrella organization for seven affiliate manufacturing companies, including its flagship company Fiber Instrument Sales, Incorporated. In total, Giotto Enterprises employs more than 420 people at its Oriskany, Rome, and Ilion, NY affiliate locations.
From fiber optics to injection molding, and precision CNC machining to metal fabrication, the diversity of organization’s manufacturing expertise is just one reason why world-class companies around the globe place their trust in Giotto Enterprises.
Farmstead 1868 LLC
Farmstead 1868 is a Central New York lavender farm transforming farm-grown ingredients into premium wellness, culinary, and giftable consumer products. Founded on a multi-generation family dairy farm, the brand blends agricultural authenticity with thoughtful product design to create lavender-based skincare, home goods, and specialty foods crafted in small batches on the farm. With strong consumer appeal in agritourism, farm-to-table, and wellness markets, Farmstead 1868 products are designed to perform in specialty retail, farm markets, and gift shops. Retail partners value the brand’s authentic farm story, high-quality ingredients, and products that connect customers directly to the land where they are grown.
FLX Gateway
FLX Gateway (Finger Lakes Gateway / Schuyler County Partnership for Economic Development) is the lead economic development organization for Schuyler County, New York. We support business attraction, expansion, and entrepreneurship by connecting companies with development-ready sites, infrastructure, financing resources, and local partners. Our focus includes agribusiness, food processing, and light manufacturing, with opportunities available at the Schuyler County Business Park. We work directly with companies exploring growth, relocation, or new operations in the Schuyler County and the surrounding region.
Mohawk Valley Small Business Development Center
Corning
A smart factory relies on a seamless network to facilitate fast, dependable, and secure communications across production lines. A fiber-optic network is essential for an interconnected facility that can keep up with the high data demands and instantaneous communication required for modern smart manufacturing processes.
Fiber optic connectivity provides the foundational support needed for Industry 4.0 technologies. Corning’s solutions are designed to withstand the conditions of harsh environments, providing the essential bandwidth needed for smart manufacturing in the era of Industry 4.0.
Let Corning Optical Communications help you create a connected, smart manufacturing facility that addresses the needs of a rapidly changing industry.
FuzeHub
FuzeHub provides New York State manufacturers and technology companies with guided access to our extensive network of industry experts, programs and assets to solve productivity, commercialization, research and development issues, and other challenges to growth.
FuzeHub’s programs champion the New York State manufacturing and technology community and provide targeted resources to accelerate manufacturing competitiveness and technology commercialization.
The Arc Chemung-Schuyler
Glen Copack- A food manufacturer located in the heart of the Finger lakes since 2007. We specialize in acidified and low- acidic foods. Also, dry fill foods, rubs, cake mixes or dry ice cream mixes. We are licensed through NYS Ag & Markets, and the FDA. Glen Copack is part of the Arc of Chemung -Schuyler ‘s Business Services Division, which provides businesses, government agencies, and local non-profits with cost effective and quality business solutions.
Creekside Industries-A Division Of The Arc Otsego
Creekside Industries is a manufacturing business located in Oneonta, NY. We provide high quality services to our customers based on their unique needs – whether with packaging, assembly, warehousing, or fulfillment – Creekside’s dedicated team gets the job done right. Our goal is to partner with our customers to create solutions for their business needs to help them save money, improve efficiency, expand their markets, and successfully grow their businesses.
Creekside Industries is a non-profit business operated as a division of The Arc Otsego. We strongly align ourselves with the Arc Otsego’s mission by providing a work location that supports the individual needs of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
ARC Herkimer/Herkimer Industries
Herkimer Industries is a not-for-profit organization that assists people with developmental disabilities. One way that we are able to help them is by bringing jobs in for the people we assist to work on. The main services that we offer is that of kitting, packaging, minor assembly, warehousing, and fulfillment. We are SQF certified for the handling of packaged food as well as FDA registered for the kitting or medical devices.
SBA
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is a Federal Agency that provides assistance to businesses in all phases. We help small businesses through our access to capital (loan) programs, counseling/technical assistance services and Government Contracting. In the event of a Disaster, SBA provides relief to businesses and homeowners through our Disaster loan program.
Wynn Automation
Elevating manufacturers and engineering teams in our region by delivering value-added engineering, technical services, training, modernization, and expert support that enhances equipment reliability and workforce capability.
Engineering Services
• System Integration
• Robotic Solutions and Support
• Control System Modernization
• Electrical Design
• Machine Modifications
• Machine Safety Risk Assessment
• Risk Mitigation / Safety Upgrades
• Machine Changeover Analysis and Optimization
• Machine Intelligence Enhancements and Connectivity
Technical Support Services
• Machinery Troubleshooting
• Tech Support Contracts
• System Backup/Restoration Services
• Machine Control & Robotics Training
• Preventative Maintenance