For Immediate Release:
September 3, 2022
Contact:
Cassie Nichols
[email protected]
Governor Laura Kelly Distributes Food at Wichita Farm and Affordable Market On
Prosperity on the Plains Tour
WICHITA – Continuing her Prosperity on the Plains tour, Governor Laura Kelly today visited Pearson Family Farms -- the first, largest, and oldest urban farm in the Wichita area -- and Common Ground Mobile Market, a provider of fresh produce in food-insecure communities.
“Ensuring all Kansans can afford healthy food is a priority for my administration. It’s why I axed the food tax and why I continue to support local farmers and markets like Common Ground,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “It was a pleasure to distribute food to Wichita families at Common Ground today and help carry out its mission that ‘all are fed, and no one is hungry.’”
Common Ground Producers and Growers started with the purchase of a 40-acre farm in 1968, the Pearson Family Farm. In 2014, Donna Pearson McClish started Common Ground Mobile Market and Mobile Food Hub in hopes of addressing food insecurity, bringing quality produce to low-income residents, and serving the community.
Common Ground works with a network of farmers within 100 miles of Wichita to distribute food to seniors, communities experiencing food insecurity, and lower income Kansans.
On the tour, Governor Kelly participated in Common Ground’s food distribution services. Mobile Market attendees use senior market vouchers or SNAP/EBT cards to purchase fresh produce from the market. Common Ground Mobile Market is a member of the Double-Up Food Bucks program, which doubles the purchasing power of the SNAP/EBT card up to $25 per day when used to purchase fresh produce.
"I, along with my extended farm family, realize the importance of Governor Kelly's support for all urban and rural farm communities,” Donna Pearons McClish, Common Ground Producers and Growers founder and CEO, said. “We believe the Governor also recognizes the impact of urban agriculture in our communities and supports the hard work of small farmers in urban areas in Kansas who feed a lot of people on small budgets.”
In May, Governor Kelly signed the bipartisan “Axe the Food Tax" bill, which completely eliminates Kansas’ grocery tax by 2025. The “Axe the Food Tax” bill keeps Kansas dollars in Kansas and puts money back into the pockets of every Kansan who purchases groceries.
While on the tour, Governor Kelly also cut a ribbon in celebration of recent updates to the farm, including a new portable walk-in cooler to store fresh produce and new equipment.
The photos of this tour stop, found below, are available for media use:
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