Worcester Business Journal

18 2022 Economic Forecast • Worcester Business Journal • www.wbjournal.com M A N U F A C T U R I N G Laury Lucien Co-founder & CEO Major Bloom, in Worcester Lucien has her hands in the can- nabis industry from virtually every angle. An attorney with expertise in providing legal services to cannabis businesses, she leads the Worcester cannabis dispensary Major Bloom, the second econom- ic empowerment shop to open in the city. She was appointed to the Cannabis Advisory Board this year by Massachusetts State Treasurer Deborah Goldberg, where she will be one of 25 people who make recom- mendations to the regulatory body Cannabis Control Commission. Somehow, she finds time to work as an adjunct professor at Suffolk University Law School. Jeannie Hebert President & CEO Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce e Blackstone Valley is a pocket of storied manufacturing towns, many of which have spent the last several decades pivoting from textiles to more modern sectors in higher demand. At center of this is advocate and expert Hebert. She's not only well-versed in the local economic histories of her coverage area, she's been leading the way to boost workforce onboarding, particularly through the Black- stone Valley Education Hub, which helps connect everyone from high school students to the recently incarcerated with the skills they need for the manufac- turing field, which is desperate for workers. Ryan MacKay Owner Lilac Hedge Farm LLC, in Holden & Rutland As the next generation behind the region's agricultural sector raises its profile and adapts to so- cial-technological norms, MacKay is leading the charge forward. A first-generation farmer who owns 350 acres in Holden and 50 acres in Rutland, MacKay is spearheading a renewed interest in agro-tourism while working steadfast in the increas- ingly popular pasture-raised livestock sector. His business provides customers an opportunity to visit and enjoy the trappings of a locally owned and oper- ated farm, as well as a venue for buying locally grown and sourced meats. As president of Worcester County for the Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation, a founding board member of Central Mass Grown, and a member of the Holden Agricultural Commission, MacKay's interests in the health of the local farming industry are community-facing. Three people in manufacturing to meet in 2022 M anufacturing is a $6.5-billion industry in Central Massachusetts, with mul- tiple sectors experiencing upheaval in 2021. Here's what is on tap for next year. Investment in Devens Billions of dollars passed through Devens in the last year, by way of companies expanding, investing in, buying, or building real estate, much of which will go toward manufacturing and research across multiple sectors, including the $1.8 billion raised by nuclear energy startup Commonwealth Fusion Systems. If real estate is hot in Central Massachusetts right now, Devens is a pressure point. While manufacturing space in other parts of the region are being repurposed and, some- times, built new, nowhere seems to have as much action going on as the former military base north of Worcester. Investment hasn't shown any signs of slowing down, as many of 2021's announced projects come to fruition, bringing with them another hot commodity: jobs. The younger face of agriculture Central Massachusetts has more than 1,700 farms, according to the nonprofit Central Mass Grown, and New manufacturing Fresh development and emerging sectors are reshaping one of the largest Central Mass. industries BY MONICA BENEVIDES WBJ Senior Staff Writer Worcester County is ranked third in the nation among direct-to-consumer agricultural sales. With community supported agriculture sales growing in popularity as consumers seek out locally sourced produce, meat, and flowers, a younger generation of farmers is working to transform the industry. Amassing Instagram followings and using savvy marketing techniques to appeal to a so- cial media-driven world, the region's agricultural sector is set to continue expanding as farm turnover increases and both Millennials and other older professionals ex- perience white-collar burnout, turning toward careers to get them outside and connecting more directly with their communities – a benefit for farmer and consumer, alike. Shifting cannabis regulation culture e Cannabis Control Commission, which regulates the adult-use and medical markets in Massachusetts, has officially moved out of its freshman class, with Chairman Steven Hoffman the only member of the original five-person team remaining. In the time since the CCC got to work, and since the legal market officially opened up shop in November 2018, many of the fears about the cultural and economic fallout of le- galizing cannabis have failed to come to fruition. In lieu of those concerns, a young and popular – and lucrative – industry is getting off the ground. e current class of commissioners are now tasked with expanding and fine-tuning the regulatory landscape, not setting it up from scratch. ey've already clarified requirements for business diversity plans, and they stand to make similar changes moving forward. While their predecessors laid the initial groundwork, the current commissioners will work to improve it. PHOTO | COURTESY OF COMMONWEALTH FUSION SYSTEMS W W Bob Mumgaard, CEO of Commonwealth Fusion Systems, which is building a $300-million facility in Devens

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