
Food and Beverage
From Simple Beginnings…
From Crisfield’s 19th Century fame as the “Seafood Capital of the World” to the rise of fully integrated and branded poultry giants beginning in the mid-20th Century, the LESMD Region has a long tradition of food production and processing. Poultry continues to dominate the subsector, with seafood maintaining an important niche. Other notable categories include candy manufacturers, food oil manufacturers, soft drink bottlers and breweries.
At the same time LESMD educational institutions have increasingly tailored their programs to provide this subsector with a trained workforce. Training in areas such as skilled trades, transportation, logistics and food sciences are offered at various levels of the education system, from career & technical high schools to two year and four year institutions. A planned campus expansion at Wor-Wic Community College shows a continued commitment to Food and Beverage as an LESMD Economic Engine.