Why the future of agriculture is a hot topic in Virginia

In his keynote at day one at CEA Summit East, Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry for the Commonwealth of Virginia Matt Lohr touched on how the locally grown food movement is playing a continuing role in the growth of agriculture. It comes at a time, he says, when environmental factors and rising costs have put increasing pressure on producers. 

“One very interesting thing that continues to grow and expand is the increased demand for locally grown foods,” Lohr says. “I think COVID played a big part in that, as people became concerned with how their food was produced and how it gets to them.” 

There is also a growing need to produce more food over the next decade. So what does that mean for the future of agriculture, be it in Virginia or elsewhere? It means, Lohr says, that there’s an opportunity. 

“We have to look at new ways to grow the food we need,” Lohr says. He says that while there’s always going to be a need for traditional ag - specifically for crops like corn and soybeans, as well as livestock and dairy - there’s “an incredible opportunity before us” to feed people with lettuce, tomatoes and other crops grown indoors. 

In 2023, Virginia passed House Bill 1563 and Senate Bill 1240 that expanded the “agricultural sales tax exemption to include items used to produce agricultural products for market in a CEA commercial facility.” Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who Lohr repeatedly cited as a major proponent of CEA, called the tax exemption “vital.” 

Lohr cited that bill signing as a way to highlight the history of agriculture in Virginia that also is looking toward the future. Indoor ag businesses, as well as the research at universities in the state, are a “catalyst for economic transformation.” The combination of economic development and research, Lohr says, helps “position the Commonwealth as the go-to state for CEA growth in this rapidly growing industry.” 

Virginia has seen several CEA operations and projects committed to the state in the last year or so, including a vertical farming campus in Danville and Better Future Farms near Charlottesville. 

There’s also an influx of new kinds of farmers entering agriculture, Lohr says, that Virginia can take advantage of. There are young people - people that are attracted by the technology used in CEA, as well as its mission. There are also older first-time farmers entering in the industry. At a recent event aimed at helping new growers navigate financing, Lohr says a third of attendees were in their 60s. 

“There are so many people now that have an interest in agriculture,” Lohr says, “and it’s so exciting to be in a position where we can help lead that way.”