On a recent trip down to New York City we saw this advertisement on the Metro-North Railroad. An October 2014 press release from Governor Andrew M. Cuomo reported that the Taste NY store opened in February 2014 in Grand Central Terminal. As a life-long New York State resident, this was the first of me seeing or hearing about it. Unfortunately, we did not have time to stop and peruse the shop, located next to the Biltmore Room across from track 37. On our next trip into the city we will be making sure to stop in and make a purchase.
So what exactly is Taste NY?
Taste NY is an economic initiative that Governor Andrew M. Cuomo began in 2011 to promote products made in New York. In an October 2014 press release Cuomo stated, “We launched the Taste NY program to highlight the world-class products that our food and beverage producers have to offer, and in doing so have boosted the profiles and sales of a wide variety of small business owners.”
In November 2014 the first Taste NY Harvest Fest was held at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse, New York to provide consumers with a tasting and buying opportunity to support local producers.
How can you support Taste NY?
You can start by checking out the official website here. The site provides information on beer, cider, dairy, fruits & vegetables, maple, spirits, wine and specialty products. Each heading provides information on that particular industry in New York state, as well as useful links and information on where to purchase such items.
Visit a Taste NY Farmer’s Market at select Travel Plazas located on the New York State Thruway. Check here for additional information.
Check out the Taste NY store in Grand Central Terminal and purchase goods.
Or, depending on where in New York State you live, buy locally and help to support New York food and beverage producers.
What’s in the future for Taste NY?
In his October 2014 press release, Cuomo proposed major expansions for the program, including being able to purchase products online via the Taste NY website. At the time of writing this post, products were not currently available for purchase through the site, although it looks like they will be using Shopify.
Adding Taste NY displays, vending machines and stores on all SUNY and CUNY campuses.
There are also plans to place Taste NY vending machines, at the Department of Transportation rest areas in Binghamton and Clifton Park as well as in state office buildings.
Additional retail Taste NY stores are in the works as well as Taste NY displays in New York state liquor stores with special tags on bottles to help identify them as “made in New York.”
A mobile phone app to be released through “I LOVE NY” which will identify Taste NY attractions throughout the state.
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I’m sure if you haven’t already seen the Taste NY logo and advertising, you will be seeing a lot of it in 2015.
This year, one of our family goals is to eat more food sourced locally from New York State, which helped to inspire this blog. We will be using the Taste NY site as a reference as well as buying from local farmer’s markets. We will hopefully be able to check out Harvest Fest 2015!
Have any of you seen any Taste NY signs, visited the store or seen the website?
