Wichita Food Co-op local growers of organic produce and livestock

State's locally grown produce an untapped economic market, expert, some lawmakers say.

By Chris Green - Harris News Service
April 19, 2009

TOPEKA - The future of food in Kansas just might include a nod in the direction of the state's agricultural past.

Some state officials see a growing demand for locally grown fruits and vegetables, pervasive nearly a century ago, as an economic opportunity for the state once more.

A presentation last month by Rhonda Janke, an associate professor of horticulture at Kansas State University, gave lawmakers on the Senate Agriculture Committee a chance to mull over the possibilities for the agricultural niche.

While Kansans spend $525 million every year on fruits and vegetables, Janke said estimated Kansas farm income for such produce is only about $16 million.

Sen. Marci Francisco of Lawrence, the top Democrat on the agriculture committee, requested that the panel be allowed to hear the presentation.

She said she hoped the information would give lawmakers a sense of the benefits Kansas could reap by tapping into a growing desire among some consumers to buy local produce, including organics, from smaller farming operations. "I think we're concerned about the economy and where our dollars are going, so this is a good time to figure out how many of those dollars are staying in Kansas," Francisco said.

In 1910, according to Janke, Kansas farmers grew several hundred thousand acres of potatoes, vegetables and apples, but such production has waned drastically over the years from that peak.

These days, the state is known for such commodities as beef and wheat, producing many times more than what Kansans could ever consume on their own.

According to Janke, Kansas raised 270 million bushels of wheat in 2007, enough to feed a Kansas population of 2.8 million people for 43 years. That same year, 8.7 million beef cattle were sold, an estimated 4.4 billion pounds of beef - enough to feed Kansas for 17 years.

Exports of those products pump billions of dollars into Kansas economy. But Janke said the economic potential of locally grown fruits and vegetables in the state, while smaller, remains relatively untapped.

Janke said that Kansas presently has 473 vegetable farms with 8,842 acres in production, growing enough produce to meet only about 11 percent of its current consumption level.

As a result, the state ranks 45th out of 50 states in the country in terms of per-capita vegetable production. When it comes to temperate fruits, such as apples, the state produces only about 2 percent of its present need.

Tastes better?

The K-State professor says that if Kansas were to grow more of its own fruit and vegetable supply, then it might offer an opportunity for the state to better secure its food supply chain from the hazards of disruption. Surplus produce could be distributed to help local food banks, she said.

She also said that because locally grown fruits and vegetables can be picked fresher, consumers can eat them at their peak for nutrition and flavor. The availability of such offerings might even help spur an increase in consumption of the nutritious food.

"If it tastes good and it's good for you, then it's easier to get kids to eat them, too," Janke said.

Dozens of communities across the state now feature farmers markets, where consumers can purchase local foods. The sale of fruits, berries, nuts, vegetables and melons has been on the rise since 2000, according to a Kansas Department of Agriculture survey.

Over the past four years, the state has received about $415,000 in federal grants for local specialty crops through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, according to Lisa Taylor, a department spokeswoman.

In addition, Janke and several other groups are in the process of applying for a $2 million federal grant to help foster a sustainable local food system in the Kansas River Valley and the greater Kansas City metro area.

Yet ramping up the amount of produce being grown in Kansas still faces some challenges, Janke said.

For one thing, the state couldn't grow enough produce to entirely eliminate the need for imported fruits and vegetables, as some products desired by consumers wouldn't grow in Kansas.

And because of the state's geographic position, farmers face a challenging climate that includes substantial temperature extremes in the spring and pests that could hinder the growing of some vegetable or fruit crops.

In addition, fruit and vegetable farmers lack the government-funded farm subsidy safety net that helps protect traditional crop farmers.

Setting modest goals

Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Mark Taddiken, R-Clifton, said he hopes the prospects are good for the state to increase its small-scale food and vegetable production, noting a growing interest in local foods.

Taddiken said he sees particular promise in the Kansas River Valley, which can supply local foods to urban areas in northeast Kansas. Because of that location, producers are able to sell in volumes that make growing local produce more cost-effective, he said.

However, he said, he also doesn't see an increase in the production of locally grown fruits and vegetables entirely reshaping the face of Kansas agriculture.

"I don't think we're going to replace our production agriculture system," Taddiken said.

Janke said that increasing the production of local fruits and vegetables in the state would likely require Kansas officials to set modest targets for increasing their consumption by capitalizing on the state's prime growing season.

Other organizations, such as schools or restaurants, could contribute to the effort by setting their own goals for increasing their use of local produce, she said.

"In the next 10 years, let's expand to 20 percent and see if we can go for 30 or something like that," Janke said of the realistic targets Kansas might be able to set for the amount of produce it grows and consumes locally.

"Individual institutions can set their own goals," she said.

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