“The 2014 Great New York State Fair was a fair like no other,” said Waffner. “We broke attendance records, refocused the event on agriculture and had some of the best entertainment anywhere in the country. Since the Fair ended earlier this month, I’ve had hundreds of people come up to me with their ideas, some of which have been great. One I really like is an idea for a ‘Taste NY Iron Firehouse Chef Competition.’ Another person came up to me during the Fair with an idea of having someone sing the National Anthem every morning, which I think is phenomenal. We want to hear ideas from every New Yorker because believe it or not, we are actively planning for 2015 already.”

“Summer’s Best in Show” was exemplified over the course of the 12-day fair, with more than 25 new attractions aimed at enhancing the experience for fairgoers. The Fair wants feedback on these and other attractions from 2014, and also ideas for 2015.

Ideas and feedback can be directly sent to an email created strictly for fair ideas, statefairideas@agriculture.ny.gov. In addition, you can offer ideas and feedback to The Great New York State Fair on Facebook and @NYSFair on Twitter.

Waffner continued, “If you have an idea for a competition, now’s the chance to make your voice heard. Have a favorite rock or country group? Let the Fair know about it. Do you love New York agriculture? How can we help enhance that experience for next year’s Fair?”

In addition to a variety of weekly events including horse shows, the Fairgrounds will play host to Taste NY Harvest Fest on Saturday, November 1. Harvest Fest has been taking place for a number of years at the Fairgrounds and allows companies to offer free samples of their products and sell those products directly to consumers. Staff at the Fair are actively looking for ways to enhance the experience for people attending the event. If you have an idea on how to make Taste NY Harvest Fest even better, please reach out to the Fair via email or social media.

Companies interested in knowing more about Harvest Fest can call Geneanne Keegan-Smith at 315-487-7711 extension 1212. Admission to the Taste NY Harvest Fest is $15 by advance sale ticket purchased no later than 4:30 p.m., Thursday, October 30 and $20 at the door. Tickets can be purchased in person at the State Fair Administration Building, by phone at 315-487-7711 weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., or by faxing an order form to 315-487-9260. The order form can be downloaded from the Harvest Fest website at www.nysfair.org/harvestfest.

The home of the Great New York State Fair is a 375-acre exhibit and entertainment complex that operates all year. A year-round schedule of events is available on the Fair’s website and you can enjoy photos from the Fair at Flickr.com/photos/nysfair.

Media Contacts:
Joe Morrissey
Public Information Officer
NYS Department of Agriculture & Markets
518-457-0752

Dave Bullard
Public Relations
New York State Fair
315-487-7711 x 1377