Kansas Locavore Overview

There are plenty of seasonal opportunities for the Kansas Locavore to find exactly the fruit, vegetable, Beef, Lamb, poultry, wine or dairy products that you may be looking for. The 2007 USDA Farm Census reported that Kansas had approximately 65,530 farms and the average number of acres per farm was 707. Of those farms, 473 showed that they raised vegetables for sale, there were 432 orchards, 155 organic farms and 173 CSAs in the state.

Our database currently includes Kansas listings for more than 300 CSAs, Farmers Markets, wineries, and grower/producers located in 50 counties across the state.

Synopsis of 2007 USDA Ag census for Kansas

For more specific detail on what local fruits and vegetables are available (and when), please check out our Kansas availability guide.  

How to find Kansas Growers and producers

To search our database for growers, producers and wineries near you, use one of these three methods:

1. Go to the Proximity search page . Enter the Zip code that you want to use as the basis for your search, enter the number of miles around the Zip code, click or unclick the business types you want to search for, then click the "Search' button. When the results appear, if you want more information about a specific business, you can click on the map marker and then the farm or business name within the information box.

If you would rather not enter a Zip code, you can enter a City and State name or a County and State name.

2. To see all of the Profiles within a specific State, go to the menu selection entitled "State Information" in the blue menu section at the top of the page. Scroll to your State name and as you move through the State names, you will see two menu choices appear to the right of your cursor. Click on the one that includes the words "Growers and Producers". When the list shows on your screen, you may sort by County name (click on the word "County"). If you are looking for a specific product such as Peaches or Beef or Honey, simply enter your search term in the appropriate box. For the Kansas Grower list, click on this link: Kansas Grower list .

3. Using the search box in the upper right hand corner of the screen, just enter the terms you wish to search for..there is no need to include a coma. As an example, if you want to find Apples in Kansas, just type in the words Apples Kansas and click on the Search button.  There is no need to enter connecting words such as "and" or "in".

Kansas Fruit and Vegetables

Apple, Peach and Cherry production in Kansas is located primarily in the Eastern and South-Eastern part of the state, with the fruit harvest season typically running from June through October. Kansas' commercial cantaloupe and watermelon production is centered around St. John in the South-Central part of the state. Although there are currently no large commercial vegetable growing operations in the state, there are hundreds of small farms providing locally grown fruits and vegetables.

Kansas Wine

An increasing number of Kansas growers are turning to wine grape production. With 15 wineries located throughout the state, Kansas currently produces more than 50,000 gallons of wine annually. To find a winery near you, enter "Kansas" and "Wine" in the Search box.

Growing and Planting seasons

Kansas' four climate zones provide a great environment for growing fruit and vegetables. The typical planting schedule begins in March and April, with harvest on some vegetables beginning as early as May or June. With more than 250 days of sun per year, Kansas provides an ideal growing environment for greenhouse or backyard vegetable gardens and fruit trees.

The growing season in Kansas ranges from about 160 days in the northwest to more than 190 days in the south and southeast parts of the state. Take a look at our "How Long until Harvest" chart to determine which annual crops are the best candidates for gardening during the Kansas growing seasons.

Additional Kansas Locavore information

• Every state has a Cooperative Extension System. Regional offices offer location specific advice on a broad array of topics (including gardening), and may be able to provide you with contact information for growers who are not yet registered on our site. Most have gardening hotlines and offer informational fact sheets, soil testing and pest identification for free or a nominal cost. Often the help is provided by Master Gardeners who are trained to assist the agriculture agents with home gardener's needs. To find contact information for your local County Extension Office – Kansas County Extension Offices. 

• If you would like to ask questions of fellow Kansas Locavores, discuss tips, share recipes, stories, pictures or any another great “Slow Food” discovery, please post it in our Kansas forum by clicking here: Kansas Locavore Forum

• State sponsored “Locally Grown” program - Simply Kansas

• Kansas County Fair Schedules – This link provides schedules for County Fairs within Kansas as well as many other local festivals – Kansas County Fairs