Giant Food Stores Sponsors PA Farm Show Complex, Expo Center
Giant Food Stores LLC has entered into a multiyear agreement with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the state Department of Agriculture to become the official sponsor of the Exposition Hall at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center, in the state capital of Harrisburg.
The sponsorship was revealed during a press conference held at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center Rotunda.
“When you think of central Pennsylvania and the Harrisburg area, the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center almost immediately comes to mind,” noted Giant Food Stores President Nicholas Bertram. “As the market leader and as a company founded and headquartered in nearby Carlisle, we couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to have our name on this iconic and important building as a public symbol of our longstanding support of the community as well as local farmers and food purveyors.”
Giant is a staunch supporter of the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture’s PA Preferred program, carrying a wide variety of PA Preferred items, among them produce, meat and dry goods. Additionally, all Giant brand milk and eggs in stores are 100 percent Pennsylvania-produced. For its efforts, the grocer has been recognized with the first-ever PA Preferred Retailer of the Year award and an Excellence in Agriculture Award from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
“Giant’s investment in the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center demonstrates a commitment to Pennsylvania agriculture and the positive impact that public-private partnerships can have on this critical industry,” said Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding. “These partnerships allow us to introduce the world of agriculture to residents from all corners of the commonwealth, celebrating our rich heritage, telling our stories and inspiring the future.”
As part of the sponsorship deal, Giant will have a display in what is now the Giant Exposition Hall during the Farm Show, sampling products from its PA Preferred vendors.
“Agriculture is so vital to our business, and we deeply value the relationships we’ve cultivated with local farmers,” added Bertram. “We firmly believe that when the connection between the agricultural and retail industries is strong everyone, from the grower to the customer, wins.”
Scheduled for Jan. 5-12, 2019, the 103rd Pennsylvania Farm Show will feature the theme Inspiring Pennsylvania’s Story through such events as a daily story time for children, interviews with Pennsylvanians working in agriculture, and opportunities for attendees to tell their own stories. The show is the nation’s largest indoor agricultural event, comprising 12,000 competitive exhibits, more than 5,200 of which are animal competitions, in addition to 300 commercial exhibitors.
Giant operates more than 170 stores under the Giant and Martin’s Food Markets banners in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia, employing nearly 30,000 associates, and offers grocery delivery via Peapod by Giant. The chain’s parent company, Ahold Delhaize USA, is No. 4 on Progressive Grocer’s 2018 Super 50 list of the top grocers in the United States.
