The Hudson Valley Food Hub in Kingston is growing thanks to more than $800,000 in funding from the state. YNN's Alexandra Weishaupt has more on future plans and the impact it could have on the community.

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KINGSTON, N.Y. -- It’s a collaborative effort between Farm to Table Co-Packers and Hudson Valley Harvest. Together they’re expanding to meet the growing demand for local food customers in New York City and throughout the Northeast.

“This is the food hub. We have over a three-bay loading dock, we have 30,000 square foot here. It’s already happening. The farms are already coming here,” said Farm to Table Co-Packers CEO James Hyland.

They’re working with more than 60 farms in 19 counties across the state to produce a variety of goods. They say they manufacture products directly for farms, or buy products directly from them.

“Orders come in during the day and overnight, packed out early in the morning and trucks leave for distribution,” said Hudson Valley Harvest President Paul Alward.

Some headed for New York City, an area which they say is currently underserved. Because of this, they’re working to create a second location nearby to serve that customer base a little easier.

Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the hub as one of five in the state created to maximize investment in the agricultural sector of New York’s economy and bring more jobs to the area.

“Twelve jobs initially then an additional twelve more jobs in the packing process and in that situation what we're talking about is impacting 24 families, 24 Ulster County families and in growing the half a billion dollar agricultural industry,” said Ulster County Executive Mike Hein.

To do this, they're including additional processing equipment, cold freezer storage, trucks and distribution depots. They’re expanding their infrastructure to meet the needs of New Yorkers.

“We think this is a great thing for Ulster County and Kingston, and we’re excited about customers getting excited about the opportunity to get more local foods,” said Hyland.