Virginia Economic Review

Just outside the city of Danville, Virginia, sits a farm unlike any of its neighbors. Tucked into the tree line, it stands 50 feet high, sleek, and solid white, standing out from the long, thin rows of tilled fields that surround it.

Tom Walker is the founder and CEO of DroneUp, a provider of drone delivery and flight services that has operated out of Virginia Beach since its founding in 2016.

From fourth-generation oyster farms to award-winning distilleries, Virginia’s food and beverage trails offer a bounty for hungry travelers. Here’s how some of those businesses have benefited from being on these trails.

Expertise in grapevine grafting and propagation, basic tractor repair, fermentation, and wine racking aren’t exactly skill sets that are widely found among the general population. Yet they are skills upon which the more than 800 wineries, breweries, cideries, and distilleries in Virginia depend.

One Virginia company’s vision of how we grow our food may sound like science fiction. But it’s getting an unusual assist from a unique partnership forged by VEDP’s International Trade Division.

While many drivers along the Interstate 81 Corridor focus on the beauty of the surrounding mountains, I-81 is the backbone that connects a thriving manufacturing industry. Unlike many interstate systems, I-81 circumvents major metro areas to connect smaller and mid-size cities.

From its humble 1887 beginnings selling food-flavoring extracts and spices from a pushcart on Richmond’s Broad Street, the company formerly known as The C.F. Sauer Company enters the new decade as Sauer Brands, Inc., a leading packaged-food manufacturer.

In the spring of 2018, Kristen Wilson wanted to jump back into full-time work after spending several years at home with her two children.

A confluence of geographical, workforce, and other advantages has put Hampton Roads in a strong position in the caffeinated beverage industry.

Maj. Gen. Ted Mercer is the new CEO and executive director of Virginia Space, the owner and operator of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS), collocated at the NASA Wallops Flight Facility on Virginia’s Eastern Shore.

Consumers’ increasing demand for safe, sustainable, locally grown food is driving interest and investment in controlled-environment agriculture (CEA).

Brantley Ivey, general manager of River Ridge Land and Cattle Co. and managing partner of Landcrafted Food, recalls overhearing a farmer comment at the Virginia Governor’s Conference on Agricultural Trade: “If you’re not selling everywhere you can domestically, don’t consider exporting.”

Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, formerly known as Orbital ATK, headquartered in Dulles, builds and delivers space, defense, and aviation-related systems including the Antares launch system, which handles resupply services for the International Space Station launched from Wallops Flight Facility on Virginia’s Eastern Shore.

Nestlé USA is a subsidiary of Nestlé S.A., a leading global nutrition, health and wellness company. Nestlé USA operates 79 manufacturing facilities and employs 48,000 people in the U.S.

With headquarters in Manassas, Aurora Flight Sciences is a leader in the development and manufacturing of advanced unmanned systems and aerospace vehicles.

Unmanned vehicles still seem like advanced technology, but in one form or another, they’ve been making inroads into civilian life for the last 15 years.

Could space-related businesses represent a $1 trillion industry by 2040? That’s the question posed by Morgan Stanley analysts in a recent report.

Joel Salatin is the owner and operator of Polyface Farms in Augusta County, which focuses on sustainable, environmentally friendly agriculture. He has authored 11 books, including “Salad Bar Beef,” “Pastured Poultry Profit$,” and “The Sheer Ecstasy of Being a Lunatic Farmer.”