(HARTFORD, CT) — The Connecticut Department of Agriculture (CT DoAg) is now accepting vendor applications for the agricultural booth spaces inside the Connecticut Building at The Big E in 2025. The Connecticut Building is one of six New England buildings on the Avenue of the States at The Big E in West Springfield, MA. The 17-day annual event will take place September 12-28, 2025, offering farms, small agricultural businesses, and agricultural non-profit organizations based in Connecticut the opportunity to market their products and promote their services. In 2024, The Big E attracted more than 1.6 million visitors, setting an overall historic attendance record and seven single-day attendance records.
“Participation in the CT Building at The Big E has provided Connecticut’s farm businesses with increased consumer activity during, and after, the annual event,” said Agriculture Commissioner Bryan P. Hurlburt. “We are seeking innovative CT agricultural businesses showcasing the wide scope of CT Grown farm products from the Ground to the Sound and encourage eligible entities to apply for consideration.”
Eligible entities include agricultural businesses, non-profits, and other entities with an agricultural mission to showcase the diversity of Connecticut agriculture to over one million attendees who come through the Connecticut Building. Connecticut Day will take place on Wednesday, September 17, 2025, and Harvest New England Day will be held on Friday, September 26, 2025.
In 2024, the Connecticut Building at The Big E featured 30 businesses highlighting CT Grown farm products and the producers who make them possible, including farm wine, dairy, honey, maple syrup, and fiber products, plus jams, jellies, sauces, and goat milk products.
The application deadline for the agricultural spaces is Friday, March 28, 2025, at 4:00 p.m. Visit www.ctgrown.gov for more information or click here to apply. For questions regarding this opportunity, please contact Erin Windham at Erin.Windham@ct.gov.
Licensed Connecticut farm wineries wishing to sell wine by the glass are encouraged to apply here for consideration. Those applications are due by 4:00 p.m. on Friday, April 11, 2025. Farm winery inquiries should be directed to Ally Hughes at Allison.Hughes@ct.gov.
The Connecticut Department of Agriculture (CT DoAg) mission is to foster a healthy economic, environmental, and social climate for agriculture by developing, promoting, and regulating agricultural businesses; protecting agricultural and aquacultural resources; enforcing laws pertaining to domestic animals; and promoting an understanding among the state's citizens of the diversity of Connecticut agriculture, its cultural heritage, and its contribution to the state's economy. For more information, visit www.CTGrown.gov.
FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES:
Rebecca Eddy, Rebecca.Eddy@ct.gov
860-573-0323
