JACKSON COUNTY MARKET

Jackson County, Illinois Farmers Market — Buy & Sell Local Crops Near You

🌽 From Ava to Elkville, Jackson County gardeners, small farms and home cooks post their extra harvest here for people nearby. Fruit, vegetables, cottage foods, plants, seeds and farm gear are all welcome. Listing is free and you keep 100% of every local sale.

Farming in Jackson County by the Numbers

Jackson County has 767 farms on 291,160 acres (about 380 acres each). Together they sold $186.6 million of farm products in 2022, led by soybeans, corn and dairy (milk).

Orchards and vineyards here grow grapes, pecans and peaches, and local fields produce pumpkins, tomatoes, sweet corn and bell peppers. Beekeepers tend about 285 honey bee colonies.

65 farms in Jackson 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 Jackson County

Livestock is part of daily life here: the 2022 farm census found 106,897 egg-laying hens, 9,455 head of cattle and 2,993 hogs in Jackson County. Fresh farm eggs are one of the easiest things to buy and sell locally.

About 1,305 people run or help run farms in Jackson County, with an average age of 59. 28% of them are women. 105 are under 35 - the next generation of local growers. 7 farms earn money from agritourism - things like u-pick fields, pumpkin patches, farm stays and corn mazes.

Where Jackson County stands out: it ranks #3 of 90 IL counties for egg-laying hens and #12 of 93 IL counties for selling food straight to the public.