Pennsylvanians warned about farm show scam

Nov 15, 2023

The Winter Farm Expo is fake, officials warn

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

Officials in Pennsylvania are warning people that recent messages about a farm show in January are a scam.

Scammers are asking businesses to submit payment to reserve booth space for the Winter Farm Expo, scheduled for Jan. 6 and 7, 2024 at the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg.

This event is fake, says Attorney General Michelle Henry and Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding.

“Scammers are creative in their endeavors to prey on people to make a profit,” Attorney General Henry said in a Nov. 14 release. “It is frustrating to see a scam like this surface and potentially tarnish a longstanding attraction event like the Pennsylvania Farm Show. Do not allow yourselves to be fooled: do your research before signing paperwork or sending payment.”

The Pennsylvania Farm Show runs from Jan. 6 to the 13 at the Farm Show Complex.

One flagged ad appeared on the Pennsylvania Food Vendors Facebook page.

Winter Farm Expo

The ad calls for crafters, artisans and food vendors to participate in the Winter Farm Expo presented by MS Chicks Co., that spaces for more than 80 vendors are available, and to email Amber Murphy at ambermurphy910@gmail.com for more information.

Farms.com sent an email to this address and received a response that there’s “few spots remaining and filling up fast.”

Farms.com replied asking how much a vendor space costs and where to send a deposit.

“The fee is charged per day and you can choose either one day or both days,” the email response says. “Check the application form and choose the space you want.”

Farms.com then asked for a link to the application form, which it received.

Farms.com input the URL into a Google tool. The tool indicated it found no unsafe content.

Farms.com did not input any information into the application form.

Scammers may be targeting people in other states too.

A Google search for MS Chicks Co., brought up no results. But searching it on Facebook found similarly worded ads.

In the Mississippi Art Events Facebook page, for example, a user named Virginia Hill is looking for people to participate in the “Amazing Art Extravaganza, presented by MS Chicks Co.”

The event is scheduled for Feb. 2, 3 and 4 at the Mississippi Gulf Coast Coliseum and Convention Center in Biloxi.

Mississippi Art Events

The booth fee is $70 per day, and like the Winter Farm Expo in Pennsylvania, more than 80 vendor spots are available.

The Mardi Gras Biloxi Showdown is scheduled at the convention center on Feb. 3 and 4.

MS Chicks Co. is also apparently hosting an event in Iowa.

The Treasure-Filled Market is scheduled for Dec. 9 and 10 at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, and more than 80 vendor spots are available, according to an ad on the Mount Pleasant Iowa News & Events page posted by Whittney Castro.

But looking at the Iowa State Fairgrounds website, the Iowa State Pigeon Association has an event there on Dec. 8 and 9. And there’s nothing scheduled at the fairgrounds on Dec. 10.

Video: The Investment Opportunities of Industrial Hemp

The fledgling U.S. hemp industry is decades behind countries like Canada, France and China, but according to impact investor and this week’s podcast guest, Pierre Berard, it could flourish into a $2.2 billion industry by 2030 and create thousands of jobs.

To reach its potential, what the hemp industry needs most right now, Berard said, is capital investment.

Last month, Berard published a report titled “Seeing the U.S. Industrial Hemp Opportunity — A Pioneering Venture for Investors and Corporations Driven by Environmental, Social and Financial Concerns” in which he lays out the case for investment.

It’s as if Berard, with this report, is waving a giant flag, trying to attract the eyes of investors, saying, “Look over here. Look at all this opportunity.”

Berard likens the burgeoning American hemp industry to a developing country.

“There is no capital. People don’t want to finance. This is too risky. And I was like, OK, this sounds like something for me,” he said.

As an impact investor who manages funds specializing in agro-processing companies, Berard now has his sights set on the U.S. hemp industry, which he believes has great economic value as well as social and environmental benefits.

He spent many years developing investment in the agriculture infrastructure of developing countries in Latin America and Africa, and said the hemp industry feels similar.

“It is very nascent and it is a very fragmented sector. You have pioneers and trailblazers inventing or reinventing the field after 80 years of prohibition,” he said. “So I feel very familiar with this context.”

On this week’s hemp podcast, Berard talks about the report and the opportunities available to investors in the feed, fiber and food sectors of the hemp industry.

Building an industry around an agricultural commodity takes time, he said. According to the report, “The soybean industry took about 50 years to become firmly established, from the first USDA imports in 1898 to the U.S. being the top worldwide producer in the 1950s.”

Berard has a plan to accelerate the growth of the hemp industry and sees a four-pillar approach to attract investment.

First, he said, the foundation of the industry is the relationship between farmers and processors at the local level.

Second, he said the industry needs what he calls a “federating body” that will represent it, foster markets and innovations, and reduce risk for its members and investors.

The third pillar is “collaboration with corporations that aim to secure or diversify their supply chains with sustainable products and enhance their ESG credentials. This will be key to funding the industry and creating markets,” he said.

The fourth pillar is investment. Lots of it. Over $1.6 billion over seven years. This money will come from government, corporations, individual investors, and philanthropic donors.

The 75-page report goes into detail about the hemp industry, its environmental and social impact, and the opportunities available to investors.

Read the report here: Seeing the U.S. Industrial Hemp Opportunity

Also on this episode, we check in with hemp and bison farmer Herb Grove from Brush Mountain Bison in Centre County, PA, where he grew 50 acres of hemp grain. We’ll hear about harvest and dry down and crushing the seed for oil and cake.