For some, the Pennsylvania Farm Show seems folksy, if not quaint.

From the Main Hall with its iconic butter sculpture to animal pens, chirping chicks and a bustling food court, a thread of Americana is evident inside the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex & Expo Center in Harrisburg.

For eight days every January, visitors find Amish furniture for sale, a blue-ribbon apple pie contest, tractor square dancing, cooking demonstrations and horse pulls, among hundreds of exhibits. They sip Pennsylvania Dairymens milkshakes and stuff themselves with chicken corn soup, mushroom burgers and apple dumplings.

The Farm Show, after all, is a showcase of the states agricultural industry. It is the Keystone States version of a state fair.

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Lately the show has taken on a bit of a hipper vibe. You can actually - gasp! - buy wine and hard cider, sample beer, order gluten-free foods, buy hemp products and grab a glimpse of Gritty, the famed Flyers mascot, in all of his buttery glory.

Like everything, you have to constantly change. You cant standstill. You either go forward or backwards. So, were going forward, said Ron Frederick, who assists with the FFA horticulture and window exhibits.

Here are five hip things youll find at the 2020 Farm Show:

The butter sculpture is revealed at the Pennsylvania Farm Show in Harrisburg, January 2, 2020 and features Gritty, the mascot for the Philadelphia Flyers. Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com

Gritty in butter

Its not just that we predicted it when we came up with our list of butter sculptures we wanted to see. Its that we predicted a need for it. When Gritty, the mascot for the Philadelphia Flyers, first appeared, he was not warmly received by all. But it was only a matter of weeks before he was everywhere, and the Philly fans fully embraced their furry new friend. The memes were flying back and forth all through 2019 as the googly-eyed monster found a place in our hearts. And now hes got a place at our Farm Show, immortalized in that same buttery hall of fame - the annual butter sculpture - as figures like Benjamin Franklin and Milton Hershey.

Chiques Creek hemp tea is new in 2020. New items, and some returning favorites, are shown at the 2020 Pennsylvania Farm Show food court preview, January 2, 2020. Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com

Hemp and more hemp

Suddenly, hemp is big business in Pennsylvania, thanks to a change in federal law that makes it easier to grow the crop commercially. (Hemp comes from the cannabis plant, but the psychoactive chemical THC which allows marijuana users to feel a high, is removed.)

Naturally, hemp is popping up in several forms at the show, including a range of products for sale such as hemp kitty litter. A hemp exhibit will give visitors a peek inside a small hemp house and hempmobile," both with parts made from hemp products.

In the food court the hemp theme continues at the PennAg Industries booth where they sell Chiques Creek Hemp Tea from Kreider Farms in Lancaster County. The 12-ounce bottles run $2 in three flavors - original, passionfruit-mint and peach-lemon-dandelion - and are made from hemp seed oil.

We are promoting Pennsylvania agriculture and hemp is an important agricultural product of the state of Pennsylvania, said Dave Andrews, Kreiders vice president of sales and marketing. We are trying to be leaders in hemp agriculture because its the beginning of a renaissance and we want to be on the leading edge of that.

Lt. Gov. John Fetterman talks to FFA members before the butter sculpture is revealed at the Pennsylvania Farm Show in Harrisburg, January 2, 2020. Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com

An unconventional lieutenant governor

Say what you will about our Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman or his politics, but hes a striking figure compared to his fellow Pennsylvania politicians. Even if he werent a tall, potentially imposing figure, youre not likely to see him in a suit and tie very often. And he certainly wasnt wearing one during the preview for this years Farm Show, as he posed with the butter sculpture - and mugged with Gritty for social media - and sampled new food court offerings. If the Farm Show is Graceland, the Dairymens milkshake is Elvis, he quipped, while sipping a Farm Show milkshake. He and his wife, Gisele, became political celebrities even before joining the Wolf administration - and did we mention that they hang out with Kim Kardashian sometimes?

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Farm Show attendees visit the Pennsylvania Cider Guild area in the Main Hall to sip and sample hard cider, January 5, 2019. File photo by Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com

Lots of booze

Who would have thought you could drink alcohol at the Farm Show, let alone buy it? Weve come a long way in PA. In recent years, the Farm Show has tapped into the states booming booze businesses. For several years Pennsylvania wineries have had prime real estate at the show with a booth in the Main Hall where wineries pour samples and sell bottles of their best. Several years ago, hard cider followed and last year beer had its day with an inaugural craft beer competition. This year, for the first time, visitors ages 21 and older will be able to buy hard cider as well as sample craft beer. Of course, results from wine, hard cider and craft beer competitions will be announced on Jan. 4.

The Philly port sandwich, made with chopped portabella mushrooms seasoned with garlic, onions, salt, pepper and cheese, served Philadelphia cheesesteak style. is new for 2020. New items, and some returning favorites, are shown at the 2020 Pennsylvania Farm Show food court preview, January 2, 2020. Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com

Gluten-free, vegan and organic foods

In the past, if you followed a strict diet, you were likely out of luck at the Farm Show. Most of the food court offerings hardly pass as health food. But vendors introducing more options, making it easier for those who cant or dont want to eat deep-fried everything. (Look, if Burger King can sell Beyond Burgers, the Farm Show can certainly do its part.) This year, the Mushroom Growers of Pennsylvania are selling a Philly Port Sandwich that can be ordered sans roll as a vegan and gluten-free option. In addition, the Pennsylvania Livestock Association added gluten-free meatballs. (Although, it notes all of its meats are gluten-free.) And Bell & Evans has brought on board a full menu of organic chicken items, including a new entrant for 2020, parmesan crusted chicken meatballs.

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With hemp, Gritty and craft beer, Pa. Farm Show is hipper than ever - pennlive.com