Joe Ogrodnick

The first building at the Cornell Food & Agriculture Technology Park in Geneva will be ready for occupancy this month.

A new research and development park affiliated with Cornell is seeking tenants interested in developing the next generation of food, agriculture and bio-based products. The Cornell Food & Agriculture Technology Park, known as "The Technology Farm," is designed to foster the creation of innovative and breakthrough technologies. Located in Geneva, N.Y., the first building will be ready for occupancy this month.

The Technology Farm is a 72-acre campus that enables collaboration among more than 500 Cornell faculty members at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) in Ithaca and at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva. Tenants can link to the latest research in various fields including beverage technology, crop and turf protection, plant germ-plasm technology, wine and viticulture, seed technology, transgenic technology, food and food safety, horticultural sciences and precision agriculture.

"Cornell is a natural partner for select entrepreneurs and organizations who seek competitive advantages through research and development," says Susan A. Henry, the Ronald P. Lynch Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell. "A major $600 million New Life Sciences Initiative ensures that Cornell will remain at the forefront of biological discoveries and technological innovation."

Some of the defining amenities at The Technology Farm include:

• Business incentives including New York's Empire Zone program.
• A new flexible laboratory research building with wet labs and office space, designed to provide start-ups and established companies with facilities and room to grow.
• Controlled environmental storage, greenhouses and growth chambers.
• Nearby land for field research trials.
• Build-to-suit sites for established companies.
• Easy access to a well-educated work force.
• Recruitment opportunities from Cornell and other regional institutions.
• Assistance identifying financing, business services, investors and partners.
• Assistance in business or product marketing and marketing communications.

"Nowhere else in the world can enterprises work closely with Cornell in such an intense, market-focused environment offering the science, intellect and capabilities of Cornell," says Daniel J. Fessenden, executive director of the park.

More than $8 million in federal, state and local government funding has been raised to establish The Technology Farm. The completed facility will have about 375,000 square feet available for research, development and light production.

For a private tour and information about the tenant application process, contact Fessenden at (315) 781-0070.