Centrally located on Maryland's Eastern Shore, Talbot County is a largely rural county with 64 percent of the land in agricultural production. Easton, the county seat, serves as the commercial and industrial hub for the Mid-Shore region. The Memorial Hospital of Easton serves as the acute care hospital for the Mid-Shore as well. Development infrastructure in the town of Easton is provided by Easton Utilities, a non-profit public utility, which includes three internet fiber rings supplying high speed, secure and redundant internet access to users.

Talbot County targets six major sectors including agriculture production, environmental sciences, electronics, aviation, information and medical technologies as growth industries. The NOAA Oxford Laboratory includes Dept. of Natural Resources and Coast Guard facilities and provides a working research environment dedicated to monitoring the health of the Chesapeake Bay and national fisheries. Several environmental science based companies are located in the county in addition to information technology companies, DoD contractors, manufacturers and aviation service providers.

There is an available workforce of 80,000 within a 25-mile radius of downtown Easton. Manufacturing supports eight percent of the job base, and major employers include Allen Family Foods, Cadmus Communications, Celeste Industries, Chesapeake Publishing, Konsyl Pharmaceuticals, L-3 Communications, Orion Safety Products, Salisbury Pewter, Sea Watch International, SFA, Wildlife International and The Whalen Company. The healthcare sector, including UMMS/SHS and the Delmarva Foundation, is the largest employment sector in the county.

For additional information, download the 4-page Brief Economic Facts for the county.
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