UNION COUNTY MARKET

Union County, South Dakota Farmers Market — Buy & Sell Local Crops Near You

🌽 From Alcester to and Jefferson, Union 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. It's free to post, there's no cut taken, and local farm food carries no sales tax.

Farming in Union County by the Numbers

Union County has 498 farms on 197,254 acres (about 396 acres each). Together they sold $171.9 million of farm products in 2022, led by corn, soybeans and cattle.

Orchards and vineyards here grow persimmons and nectarines, and local fields produce sweet corn. Beekeepers tend about 12 honey bee colonies.

5 farms in Union County already sell straight to the public, about $15,000 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 Union County

Livestock is part of daily life here: the 2022 farm census found 19,046 head of cattle, 639 sheep and 271 egg-laying hens in Union County. Grass-fed beef sold by the quarter or half is a common way ranchers sell direct.

About 853 people run or help run farms in Union County, with an average age of 60. 27% of them are women. 70 are under 35 - the next generation of local growers. 2 farms earn money from agritourism - things like u-pick fields, pumpkin patches, farm stays and corn mazes.