HEALTHY CORNER STORE INITIATIVE
For generations, Wichita residents have known Pearson Family Farms as the place to find fresh greens and seasonal produce.
Now, shoppers can count on regular weekly market hours at the historic farm, where fresh fruits and vegetables from growers across Kansas are available Thursday through Saturday from 4 to 7 p.m. Pearson Farms is located at 2430 E. 33rd St. N., just north of K-96 and west of Hillside.
The new market is operated by the Pearson family nonprofit, Common Ground Producers & Growers.
“We’re just living out our family legacy,” said founder Donna Pearson McClish.
For several years, Common Ground has operated a mobile market program that sells fresh produce at approximately 40 monthly popup markets in 10 cities across four counties in south-central Kansas.
Working with about 45 growers, Common Ground purchases fruits and vegetables harvested throughout Kansas. The selection changes throughout the growing season based on what farmers are harvesting each week.
That means shoppers may find sweet corn, tomatoes and peaches one week and melons, squash or greens the next. Unlike produce that may spend days or weeks in warehouses and trucks, much of the produce sold through Common Ground comes directly from growers while it is at peak freshness.
Keeping prices affordable has helped Common Ground build a loyal customer base across south-central Kansas while supporting local farmers.
“Our customers have to be able to afford it,”
Donna Pearson McClish
Any produce remaining at the end of the week is donated to community organizations that help feed families in need.
Participation in Wichita’s Healthy Corner Store Initiative is helping Common Ground establish a more permanent fresh-produce market at the farm. Initiative funds are being used to purchase produce display stands and install an awning that will provide shade for shoppers, workers and produce during the hottest months of the year.
Pearson expects the farm market to open each year in May and operate through the growing season, which typically ends with the first hard frost in November.
The new market gives Wichita residents another opportunity to purchase fresh Kansas-grown produce while supporting local growers and one of the city’s longest-standing farming traditions.
