POLK COUNTY MARKET

Polk County, Iowa Farmers Market — Buy & Sell Local Crops Near You

🌽 Polk County has more backyard fruit trees and home gardens than anyone could eat from. Crop Market connects them with neighbors in Des Moines, West Des Moines and Berwick. Watch for local apples when it comes into season in Iowa. It's free to post, there's no cut taken, and local farm food carries no sales tax.

Farming in Polk County by the Numbers

Polk County has 768 farms on 179,322 acres (about 233 acres each). Together they sold $161.1 million of farm products in 2022, led by corn, soybeans and nursery & greenhouse plants.

Orchards and vineyards here grow grapes, apples and peaches, and local fields produce pumpkins, squash, green beans and tomatoes. Beekeepers tend about 1,168 honey bee colonies.

82 farms in Polk County already sell straight to the public, about $1.1 million 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 Polk County

Out in the pastures and barnyards, Polk County counts 6,089 head of cattle, 3,049 egg-laying hens and 2,011 sheep. Grass-fed beef sold by the quarter or half is a common way ranchers sell direct.

About 1,429 people run or help run farms in Polk County, with an average age of 58. 36% of them are women. 156 are under 35 - the next generation of local growers. 8 farms earn money from agritourism - things like u-pick fields, pumpkin patches, farm stays and corn mazes.

Where Polk County stands out: it ranks #4 of 93 IA counties for honey bee colonies and #6 of 95 IA counties for selling food straight to the public.