On behalf of University of Wyoming Extension in partnership with the Wyoming Department of Agriculture, I am excited to present the inaugural Wyoming Specialty Crop Directory Online Database: A guide to local foods, farmers’ markets, and community gardens. This database will allow us to continually update listings and also add new ones. It is a companion piece to the 2024 Wyoming Specialty Crop Directory, which is available for free download at https://bit.ly/wyo-specialty-crop-directory.
With funds from WDA’s Specialty Crop Block Grant Program through the USDA, we created volume 2 of the directory along with this database. These resources aim to connect Wyoming residents and visitors with a variety of edible specialty crops. This includes fresh vegetables and fruits, culinary herbs and spices, and honey. Additionally, we feature homemade goods containing specialty crops, such as jams, jellies, barbecue and hot sauces, salsas, pickled and fermented vegetables, fruit pies, tea, hard cider, and wine, to name a few.
Down the road, we will be adding listings for Wyoming microbreweries and coffee roasters as hops and coffee are among the USDA-listed specialty crops.
This online database and the comprehensive Wyoming Specialty Crop Directory bring new life to the saying “Shop Local,” as both list hundreds of Wyoming producers—big and small—who sell their products at local businesses, outdoor and indoor farmers’ markets, co-ops, roadside stands, and other venues, in addition to direct and online sales. As you travel across our state, check out county sections on your smartphone to seek out local goods in the communities you visit. For my wife, Leslie, and me, that is becoming part of our itinerary, as we’ve enjoyed locally produced foods from every corner of Wyoming and in-between. You might be surprised at the variety of foods being produced in the state.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of working on this project is visiting with folks around Wyoming who produce these foods, and who oversee farmers’ markets, CSAs, community and church gardens, and school horticulture programs. I have heard many wonderful stories, and one word seems to follow them all: “passion.” That very word is also driving a new movement, as year-round indoor farmers’ markets and farm stands are popping up across the state, thanks in part to the Wyoming Food Freedom Act. As you read through a section and notice a potential listing we missed, please get in touch. We’ll add new listings to both the online database and the next volume of the Wyoming Specialty Crop Directory, as well as make updates to current listings.
I worked with Ann Tanaka, owner of Tanaka Web Works in Cody, on the online database, and we set a goal to make it both visually appealing and reader friendly. Ann led the effort to create a model design, and we hope you enjoy perusing the sections, reading listings, and looking at pictures. Talking design, Tana Stith, owner of T2 Communications in Laramie, is the artist behind the Wyoming Specialty Crop Directory. If you have any specific ideas on how we can build on either the directory or the online database, please let me know. Like me, both Tana and Ann worked at UW Extension and the UW College of Agriculture, Life Sciences, and Natural Resources for many years, and we thank Extension for hosting both the directory and the online database on its website. If you haven’t already, please grab hold of the growing local food movement across Wyoming! As Julia Child said: “You don’t have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces—just good food from fresh ingredients.”
Robert Waggener
Coordinator and editor, Wyoming Specialty Crop Directory
robertw@uwyo.edu
