New Fall Food Festival Coming to the Hudson Valley

The Hudson Valley hosts numerous fall food festivals every year beginning in September. These festivals are a way to bring communities together and celebrate the accomplishments and harvests of farmers throughout the region.

But this year, a new festival is set to join the ranks of those long-loved traditions.

Feeding the Hudson Valley will be a celebration dedicated to all of the beautiful fresh produce grown right in the area.

The Hudson Valley Regional Council is putting on the festival on October 8 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.. In addition, the festival will be run in collaboration with the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley’s “Walk to Fight Hunger.”

All of the festivities will be taking place on the Poughkeepsie side of the Walkway Over the Hudson State Historic Park.

Rich Schiafo of the Hudson Valley Regional Council recently spoke about the nature of the entire event.

He said that the day-long festival is part of a larger initiative being put forth by the Hudson Valley Regional Council. While it may seem like a simple day of fun and appreciation for local produce, the festival is a large piece of the initiative to raise awareness about food waste.

In addition, the council hopes to increase food waste prevention efforts through educational events like these.

However, food isn’t the only thing making people in the area excited.

Now that autumn is in full swing, fall foliage season has officially begun.

On September 16, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that the I LOVE NY fall foliage report was officially up and running once more.

The I LOVE NY fall foliage report is a volunteer-run publication that’s updated weekly with the color conditions of leaves all over the state during the autumn season.

In addition to the official fall foliage report, citizens from across the state have been invited to participate in the 2016 Foliage Photo of the Week campaign.

To participate, travelers only need to upload their photos to Instagram and use the hashtag #NYLovesFall. The project is an effort to spread the beauty of the season, and to encourage travelers to share their discoveries.

Believe it or not, fall foliage season brings an enormous amount of business to the state. In 2015, it’s estimated that the total economic impact was just over $26.5 billion.

It might seem like June is the most popular month for several reasons. Not only is it the month in which the most ice cream is produced, it marks the start of vacation time for many.

However, between the beautiful fall foliage and all of the fall festivals being put on in the Hudson Valley, it’s hard not to pick September or October as the best month of the year.