The 2026 Mid-Atlantic Fruit & Vegetable Convention will be held at the Hershey Lodge January 27-29. Multiple concurrent educational sessions will be featured during the three day event along with a large industry trade show. A farm market bus tour and several pre-convention workshops will be offered on Monday, January 26, 2026.
Over 2,200 fruit, vegetable, and berry growers as well as other industry personnel from throughout the mid-Atlantic region and beyond gather each year for what has become one of the premier grower meetings on the East Coast. The 2026 Convention will be the 49th annual gathering of growers at the Hershey Lodge in Hershey, PA.
Plans are being made to offer exceptional educational sessions on a full range of topics in tree fruit, stone fruit, vegetable, small fruit, and potato production plus labor/farm management and retail & wholesale marketing. Greenhouse ornamental and cut flower sessions plus sessions on organic agriculture will be included as well. Also offered will be special sessions presented in Spanish for Spanish-speaking industry members. A more detailed schedule with topics and speakers will be posted on www.MAFVC.org in the coming weeks.
The day before the main convention opens, growers can choose between a bus tour of farm operations in Frederick County, MD or a variety of workshops. Workshops include Irrigation A to Z: Modern Irrigation for Horticultural Crops, Honeycrisp Intensive – from Soil to Storage, Transitioning the Farm: Understanding Your Options, and Pennsylvania Pesticide Applicator License Training.
Tuesday kicks off the opening day of the convention which consists of sessions on tree fruit, irrigation, drones, soil health, sweet corn, high tunnel, general vegetable – packing house, precision agriculture, and marketing sessions on retail marketing, POS systems, and marketing & AI.
Sessions on the Wednesday include tree fruit, stone fruit, organic, greenhouse ornamentals, tomatoes, general vegetables, small fruit, marketing sessions on food trends, agritourism, grant support, and using AI for recruiting, labor/farm management sessions, and sessions for Spanish speaking workers in the fruit and vegetable industries.
The final day of the convention focuses on tree fruit, potatoes, cut flowers, vine crops, winter growing, small fruit, marketing sessions on using drones, geofencing, creating podcasts, incorporating technology, social media, as well as additional labor/farm management sessions.
The convention has been jointly sponsored by the State Horticultural Association of Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Vegetable Growers Association, the Maryland State Horticultural Society, and the New Jersey State Horticultural Society since 1978. In 2014, the Virginia State Horticultural Society joined the convention. Extension personnel from Penn State, University of Maryland, Rutgers, and Virginia Tech assist with organizing the three days of educational sessions.
The Trade Show will be in Great American Hall and Aztec Room with additional booths located in the Confection Lobby. Specialized horticultural equipment, farm market merchandise, and packaging will all be on display along with information on the latest seed varieties, fruit varieties, pesticides and other supplies and services for the commercial grower.
Many pesticide applicator update training credits will be available to Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia growers attending the sessions. Arrangements have also been made to offer respirator-fit tests for pesticide applicators. The program covers nearly every aspect of fruit, vegetable, potato, and berry production. Commercial growers should not pass up this terrific educational opportunity, or the opportunity to network with fellow growers and others in the industry.
The 19th annual Mid-Atlantic Cider Contest will be conducted during the convention to determine the best tasting cider produced in the region. On Tuesday, January 27, fruit and vegetable growers will gather for the annual Fruit & Vegetable Growers Banquet which will include awards and recognitions. The evening of January 28 will feature a reception for apple growers.
***Online registration closes 1/16/26, after that date please register at the NJSHS table***
