Harvesting Opportunity in Kansas:

Building Community Wealth through Food and

Farming
Landmark Publications
 5 Lessons from Fed Reserve
1. Demand for local food is
increasing
2. Investments in local &
regional food systems reap
benefits beyond food
production
3. Anticipate technical
assistance and support.
4. Capital is a necessity.
5. Regional food systems =
economic development
From Harvesting Opportunity, Chapter 2, “The Investment Continuum:
Risk, Reward and Impact in Local and Regional Food Systems,” by M. R.
Moraghan, K. Danaher, G. Harris.

Information on this slide based on presentation with Lisa Locke, St. Louis
Federal Reserve Community Development,
at KS-MO Planning Conference, October 26, 2018
 Call to action for Kansas?

“Exploring how existing rural assets and structure impact the

potential for local and regional food system initiatives to support
positive rural economic development outcomes remains a key
area of future research.
…
Local food systems that are understood and studied only in terms
of formal network transactions…may overlook the meaningful
community development and resilience outcomes at the
community or regional level…”
From Harvesting Opportunity, Chapter 3, “Local and Regional Food Systems Driving Rural Economic Development,”
by B. Jablonski, M. Hendrickson, S. Vogel, and T. Schmit.
Local and Statewide Sponsors
 National Partners Lead Event

Debra Tropp, Mary Becca Jablonski, Dara Bloom, Julia Freegood,

Deputy Director, Hendrickson, Assistant Professor Assistant Professor Assistant Vice
Local Food Research Assistant Professor and Food Systems and Local Foods President of
and Development of Rural Sociology, Extension Extension Specialist Programs, American
Division, US University of Economics, Colorado at North Carolina Farmland Trust
Department of Missouri College of State University, State University
Agriculture, Agriculture, Food, Department of
Agriculture and Natural Agriculture and
Marketing Service Resources Resource Economics
Sharing Kansas Stories
 How do we feed the conversation?
New Tools!
➢ StoryMap with event
resources

➢ For Food Councils and

community coalitions

➢ For KS eco devo

professionals
 For Food Councils
Eco Devo 101
Presentation - A
discussion guide
– Pre-made PowerPoint
Slide set with non-
expert facilitation
prompts
– Build shared
knowledge
– Identify community
resources, connections
 For Economic Development
Professionals
Community Food
Systems: A Tool for
Building Wealth in
Kansas Communities
– Highlight resources
– Provide generic and
specific examples
– Ideas for getting
started
Reactions from economic development
professionals
Growing up on a farm and in a farming
community, the focus has always been on
feeding the world. But I am now seeing that
focusing on foods that could feed our own
region that are not tied to commodities’ prices is
a sustainable way to break our community
reliance on those commodities and begin to
create an economy that is more stable.
“Local food as a community development necessity”
Inspiring Work
 Priority Goals Identified
• Increase Opportunities to Identify/Advance Local Solutions
• Improve Clarity/Coordination of Policies/Programs/Planning
• Provide Supports to Increase Production/Consumption of
F&V
• Identification of strategies and funding needs to make fresh
and affordable locally grown foods more accessible
• Identification of existing infrastructures for processing,
storing and distributing food and recommend potential
expansion
• Strategies for encouragement of farmers markets, roadside
markets and local grocery stores in unserved and
underserved areas
 Harvesting Opportunity in Kansas:
A Symposium on Building Community Wealth Through Food and Farming

Marlin A. Bates
County Extension Director
K-State Research and Extension – Douglas County
 Republic County Economic Development
Luke Mahin - Director

Republic County Economic Development Corporation (RCED) is a 501c6 nonprofit

entity formed in 1999 to help improve the economic diversity of Republic County.
 Local Incentives / Programs
• Neighborhood Revitalization Program – 2011-2020
– 5 year property tax rebate for ag, commercial, industrial, residential
over $30,000 appraised value – 95%, 90%, 70%, 40%, 20%. As of
2017 $11+ million added in incremental value.
• Rural Opportunity Zone – Student Loan Repayment Program
– 14 people funded by Republic County and 2 sponsored by RP Co.
Hospital, 18+ are now on the waiting list that grows each year.
• County Revolving Loan Funds – (3) KDOC, HUD, and Network
Kanas E-Community
– Depot Market in 1980’s and C & C High Tunnel Farms 2000’s
– Revolving loan application assistance from LRS Consulting Inc. –
RCED pays half of consulting costs up to $500 to submit app.
 Incentives and Programs continued
• City of Belleville
– electric rate and improvements incentive
• Belleville Chamber and Main Street (2008)
– Incentives Without Walls (IWW) – 0% interest loan
– Business Incentive Grant (BIG) – grant available for improvements in
Main Street District of Belleville
• Federal Opportunity Zone – Belleville census tract
– New Federal program to reduce or exempt capital gains taxes
invested in Projects of the Belleville census tract.
• Free Small Business Courses
– LRS Consulting Inc. teaches courses twice a year since 2016. CO-OP
with Cloud County to allow overlap from residents for free.
 Resource Partners

• Agenda, Belleville, Courtland, Cuba, Munden, Narka, Republic, and Scandia

• Republic County Community Foundation
• Greater Salina Community Foundation
• North Central Regional Planning
• North Central Kansas Food Council
• Dane G. Hansen Foundation
• Northwest Kansas Economic Innovation Center
• KSU Research & Extension
• Kansas Department of Commerce
• Kansas SBDC
• Kansas Department of Agriculture
• Network Kansas
• USDA Rural Development
• Kansas Rural Center
• Kansas Sampler Foundation
KDOC
NCK SBDC
Network Kansas – Entrepreneur Communities
 E-Community Programs
• Free Small Business Courses – hosted twice yearly co-
op with Cloud Corp to share courses. 48 attendees
since 2016.
• Revolving Loan Application Assistance – LRS
Consulting, RCED pays ½ cost up to $500
• E-Community Loan Pool
– Cuba Cash Store – Received loan for succession
business in Cuba population of 100 +/-.
– $250,000 annually of that $25,000 available for
programs
• Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge
– 97 students compete from 6-12th Pike Valley (1A)
and Republic County (2A) since 2017
• Jon Schallert Destination Bootcamp - Depot Market
C&C High Tunnel Farm
• Economic Gardening – Stage 2 business assistance,
opportunity for growth
• Ice House Entrepreneurship Program
Small Business Growth 1998-2016
North Central Kansas Food Council

Started in 2017 with all 12 counties in the NCRPC primary

service area including: Clay, Cloud, Dickinson, Ellsworth,
Jewell, Lincoln, Marshall, Mitchell, Ottawa, Republic, Saline,
and Washington

• 2018 Community Food Survey

• NCK FC Assessment and County Assessments
 NCK Food System Assessment

Data Source: Synergos Technologies, Inc. forecasts Business

Decision data system Estimates derived from the Consumer
Expenditure Survey, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2012
Republic County
Kansas Bostwick Irrigation District – Republic County - 31,199 acres
Total Irrigated – Republic County - 46,533 acres
 Depot Market - Courtland
• Dan Kuhn of Depot Market; Courtland: Kuhn has been growing vegetables and fruit for about 40
years. Pumpkins are his main crop, and he primarily sells wholesale with a retail market on-site. He
raised 180 acres of produce, the majority of which is under 6 pivot irrigation. He also grows under
hoop houses, mostly tomatoes, cucumbers and red raspberries. He hires seasonal labor through the
H-2A visa program.
• Most specialty crop operations in Kansas rely heavily on direct-to-consumer sales. While several
farmers are specializing and scaling to provide to institutional and wholesale purchasers, one of the
largest and to-date most successful is Depot Market in Courtland, Kansas, run by Dan Kuhn and his
wife, Kathy. Currently, the farm’s sales 35 are nearly 80 percent to wholesale outlets. But that’s not
how Kuhn got started and isn’t where he intends to keep growing.
• “We sell in 10 states on average each year, and pumpkins are our biggest crop. Two large chains
comprised half of our total sales,” Kuhn says. “We also sell to our local guys and local peddlers and
would like to grow that business, but we can’t make a dead switch and keep the farm. If we could,
we’d like to have a route going through western Kansas and hit a loop to sell to those smaller
markets.”
– Lessons Learned From Specialty Crop Growers Across Kansas Produced by the Kansas Rural Center October 2018
 C & C High Tunnel Farm
Scandia
• Experience: 10 years
• Products grown: asparagus, strawberries, tomatoes, heirloom tomatoes, bell peppers, colored bell
peppers, italian pepper, misc. peppers, cucumbers, onion, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, romenesco,
potatoes, sweet potatoes, watermelon, cantaloupe, winter squash, dried beans, turnips, edamame, zucchini,
summer squash, spinach, lettuce, kale, chard, beets, radishes, asian greens, mustard, leeks, scallions, and
misc.
• Products in retail: Jelly, BBQ sauce, Mustard, Salsa, Soaps
• CSA: 7 producers from Belleville, Formoso, Washington, Salina, Lebanon:
eggs, grassfed beef, berkshire pork, lamb, pasture raised chickens, honey, & popcorn
• Total Payroll: Ave. Payroll 11,000. Our owners draw ave. 17,000
• Employees: 8 part-time, 2 full-time
• Gross sales: Avg - $78,000 Range: $32,000 - $120,000
• Retail Radius: Washington to Phillipsburg and Superior, NE to Salina, KS
• Wholesale: Lawrence to Hutchinson
• Property Taxes: Avg - $1,100
• Sales Tax: Ave: $2,600
• Total acres farmed: 2.5 acres all in Scandia
 Sutton Farms
Norway
• Experience: 20+ years
• Products: Soy beans, corn, wheat,
• Specialty: pumpkins, green beans, sweet corn, potatoes
• Retail market partner: Depot Market
• Whole sale: farmers markets and other retailers
• Payroll: $30,000
• Employees: 6 part-time 3 full-time
• Gross sales: $40,000
• Sales territory: Local markets (45miles) and Manhattan, Hutchinson
• Total acres farmed: 2,600
• Total specialty: 70
• Total acres owned: 400
• Total acres specialty: 70
 C & S Farms LLC
• Experience: < 2 years
• Products grown: 1 – Grassfed Beef
• Products sold in retail: Beef - all cuts
• CSA / Retail: C&C High Tunnels CSA & Retail
• Total Payroll: 0 at the moment
• Gross sales: ~$20,000
• Sales territory: mostly local, Lincoln, NE and KC
• Property Taxes: we rent all of our land
• Total acres farmed: varies, 300 acres of pasture
this year, plus about 200 acres cover crop
• Total acres owned: 0
Harvesting Opportunity in Kansas:
Building Community Wealth through Food and
Farming