 Loudoun Producer December 2014 |
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Loudoun's Brew Business Is Building
Loudoun's craft beer industry is poised to join our booming winery industry.
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Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe at
Black Hops Farm in Lucketts.
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These are exciting times for Loudoun farmers and breweries! Keep up-to-date with the latest news by following @LoudounFarms on Twitter or read the economic development blog at biz.loudoun.gov.
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Save These Dates
2015 is going to be a tremendous year for Loudoun's agricultural businesses!
Join us at these upcoming events.
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Blue Ridge Cattlemen's Association Meeting
January 28
Loudoun-Grown Expo
February 14
Signatures of Loudoun Nominations
Nominations due March 2
Forum for Rural Innovation
March 13
Loudoun Small Business Week
May 11-17
Keep an eye out for farm-related events.
Loudoun Spring Farm Tour
May 16-17
Applications accepted March 1 - March 18.
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Epicurience
September 5-6 2015
Grand Tasting will be September 5.
Twilight Tour
Fall 2015
Loudoun Fall Farm Tour
October 17-18
Applications accepted August 1 - August 18.
Wine Tourism Conference
November 18 - 20
Register online
Christmas in the Loudoun Valleys
November 23 - December 24
Applications accepted October 1 - October 18.
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| More events will be posted on our calendar as they come up. If you have any special events that you'd like added to the Loudoun Farms calendar, contact Cassie Walls. |
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Linking the Trails by Association
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As mentioned in our last issue, one of the latest successes of the Rural Economy Business Development Strategy is developing the multi-user Loudoun County Trails Association.
LOCOTA will present a unified voice to actively advocate, educate, directly facilitate and communicate the goals, initiatives and benefits of a comprehensive outdoor recreation trail system that serves all types of non-motorized recreation trail users in rural Loudoun.
Recent progress includes: - The adoption of a list of priorities, which include:
- Combining public access trails;
- Working with volunteers to create a trails map
- Creating a master list of all Loudoun trails.
- The governor's announcement that 600 acres of the Blue Ridge Center will be protected as a state park, the first in Loudoun.
- The receipt of a grant to help finalize the missing link between Potomac Heritage Trail and Western Loudoun.
If you're interested in joining the association, please call Terri Smithson or attend one of the meetings on the third Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m. at American Academy of Equestrian Sciences, 19844 James Monroe Highway, Leesburg, VA 20175.
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 With nearly 1,400 farms, Western Loudoun's agribusiness is a crucial part of Loudoun's economy. With this success comes a new crop of young farmers who want to start their own businesses. At Loudoun Economic Development, we're committed to nurturing these future business owners and ensuring the success of our agricultural industry. One of the main issues that beginning farmers face is affording land. Farms can take years before they become profitable, and many farmers can't afford a large mortgage payment as they're starting their business. On the flip side, there are many Loudoun landowners who've had land in their family for generations that's not being fully utilized. The new land-linking program was conceived as a way to bring these two groups together. The program has been nicknamed "Match.com for Farmers."
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Guess where these pictures were taken and you may win a delicious prize! Warren Howell has a longtime connection to Loudoun economic development, and in each issue of Loudoun Producer we test our readers by asking you to guess the rural location where we took Warren's photo.
With the holidays coming, Warren wanted to keep this photo shoot family oriented. We explored two side-by-side farms run by a pair of brothers. One produces pasture-fed Angus, lamb and honey; the other hand-crafts wine and serves it in his 200 year-old home.
Email us Warren's location by December 15 and be entered to win a bottle of delicious Langdon Wood maple syrup made in Catoctin Creek distillery whiskey barrels!
Hint: The cattle farm is a former dairy farm named after the road it's near. The winery is named after the brothers' great grandfather.
 Did You Find Warren?
In our last issue, Warren was visiting Kevin Grove at Quarter Branch Farm in Lovettsville. You can see Kevin's fresh vegetables first hand at the Leesburg Winter Farmers Market, Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 12 noon through April at Catoctin Circle.
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Loudoun Producer will be published three times per year: the October issue is printed, and December and February issues will be sent by email. To be added to our list for all three, just send an email with your name and address that says "Loudoun Producer" to: LoudounBiz@loudoun.gov.
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