LA PLATA COUNTY MARKET

La Plata County, Colorado Farmers Market — Buy & Sell Local Crops Near You

🌽 Buy local in La Plata County: fruit, vegetables, honey, baked goods, plants and livestock from people in Bayfield, Durango and and Ignacio. Watch for local peaches when it comes into season in Colorado. It's free to post, there's no cut taken, and local farm food carries no sales tax.

Farming in La Plata County by the Numbers

La Plata County has 1,131 farms on 529,782 acres (about 468 acres each). Together they sold $33.1 million of farm products in 2022, led by cattle, hay & other field crops and nursery & greenhouse plants.

Orchards and vineyards here grow apples, grapes and sweet cherries, and local fields produce garlic, tomatoes, lettuce and carrots. Beekeepers tend about 170 honey bee colonies.

128 farms in La Plata County already sell straight to the public, about $661,000 a year in direct sales. Crop Market gives them, and every backyard grower, a free way to reach more neighbors.

Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2022 Census of Agriculture.

Farm Life in La Plata County

Out in the pastures and barnyards, La Plata County counts 16,202 head of cattle, 6,482 sheep and 6,082 egg-laying hens. Grass-fed beef sold by the quarter or half is a common way ranchers sell direct.

About 2,242 people run or help run farms in La Plata County, with an average age of 58. 45% of them are women. 205 are under 35 - the next generation of local growers. 31 farms earn money from agritourism - things like u-pick fields, pumpkin patches, farm stays and corn mazes.

Where La Plata County stands out: it ranks #7 of 63 CO counties for number of farms and #6 of 54 CO counties for egg-laying hens.