The Kansas Department of Agriculture, K-State Research and Extension and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment will host six regional workshops in February 2019 to assist farmers’ market vendors and managers.
Kansas farmers’ markets not only provide a fresh food source, but also stimulate the local economy. In 2018, 95 farmers’ markets were registered with KDA’s Central Registration of Farmers’ Markets.
“Farmers’ markets provide growers a wonderful opportunity to have real interaction with consumers, and a chance to tell their farm’s story,” said Londa Nwadike, consumer food safety specialist with K-State Research and Extension and the University of Missouri. “It’s also important for farmers to understand certain legal, safety and financial parameters before choosing to sell at a farmers’ market.”
Workshop topics will vary slightly by location. Highlighted topics include:
- Vendor Marketing and Communications
- Pest Control and Soil Health
- Regulations on Selling Meat, Eggs and Poultry
- Sales Tax for Vendors
KDA’s weights and measures program will also offer free scale certification at the workshops for attendees.
Dates and locations for the Farmers’ Market events are as follows:
Friday, Feb. 1 — Olathe: KSU Olathe
Saturday, Feb. 2 — Parsons: Southeast Research and Extension Center
Friday, Feb. 8 — Dodge City: Ford County Fair Building
Saturday, Feb. 9 — Wichita: Sedgwick County Extension Office
Friday, Feb. 15 — Manhattan: Pottorf Hall
Friday, Feb. 22 — Hays: K-State Agricultural Research Center
Registration for the February workshops is now open and is $20 per participant. Registration includes lunch; however, lunch will only be guaranteed to those participants who register prior to the respective workshop date. Registration forms can be found at FromtheLandofKansas.com/FMworkshop or at local extension offices.
Onsite registration for the workshops will open at 8:30 a.m. and the workshops will begin at 9:00 a.m. and conclude by 3:00 p.m. The Wichita workshop will begin onsite registration at 8:15 a.m. and the workshop begins at 8:45 a.m., concluding at 4:30 p.m.
For more information, contact Lexi Wright, KDA’s From the Land of Kansas marketing coordinator, at 785-564-6755 or Lexi.Wright@ks.gov.
KDA is committed to providing an environment that enhances and encourages economic growth of the agriculture industry and the Kansas economy. The Kansas Ag Growth Strategy has identified training for small companies via workshops as a key growth outcome for the specialty crop sector, particularly in the western half of the state. The farmers’ market workshops will provide education through partnerships to help make Kansas farmers, ranchers and agribusinesses more successful.