New season of ‘Made in Virginia’ premieres on Friday

Virginia’s economy boasts a wide array of goods and services. From modern manufacturing to old-world craftsmanship, the state continues to be a leading innovator and producer of manufactured products to customers throughout the world. A sampling of these products, and the processes behind them, are highlighted on the local PBS series “Made in Virginia.”

Produced by WVPT PBS, one of the Community Idea Stations, with additional support from the Virginia Foundation for Public Media (VFPM) and Atlantic Union Bank, each episode of “Made in Virginia” takes viewers from the workshop, to the factory floor, to the boardroom, and beyond.

Season 2 premieres Friday, June 7 at 7:30 p.m. on WVPT PBS.

“This season on ‘Made in Virginia,’ viewers will be taken from one corner of the state to another on a journey to learn all about the products and companies that make our state tick,” explains the show’s producer/director, Ryan Berry. “We’ll see how Stihl makes chainsaws and ships them from Virginia Beach through our port and out to the rest of the world, get a behind-the-scenes look as Whitehouse Foods creates their famous apple cider vinegar, and how Volvo USA makes every single Volvo truck in North America – all from Dublin, Virginia. Viewers will hear directly from the inventors, CEOs and craftspeople as they tell us about their products and how they could only be made right here, in Virginia.”

According to Berry, the second season will showcase everything from oyster farming to cupcake sprinkles to hardwood furniture. Viewers will learn how U.S. military patent leather shoes are made, discover how an Olympic gold medalist is transforming the horse saddle industry, and uncover the secret behind Ukrop’s famous White House Rolls.

“It takes ingenuity, creativity, craftsmanship and old fashioned hard work, along with just the right natural resources and business infrastructure, to make Virginia one of our nation’s leading manufacturing states,” says Berry.

Berry and his team see a real value to this kind of behind-the-scenes filmmaking and enjoy crisscrossing the state in search of interesting stories, businesses, and people.

Viewers from across much of Virginia will be able to share in their discoveries, as season 2 of “Made in Virginia” will air on WVPT, WCVE/WHTJ, WCVW/WVPY, as well as on WBRA and WHRO.

Watch the season 2 premiere of “Made in Virginia” June 7 at 7:30 p.m. on WVPT PBS (Harrisonburg) and June 15 at 6:30 p.m. on WCVE/WHTJ PBS (Richmond/Charlottesville). Complete local listings are available at IdeaStations.org/TV/Schedules.