Missouri Department of Agriculture News Release

To celebrate Buy Missouri Day, the Missouri Department of Agriculture’s Missouri Grown program announced funding for 13 retail businesses that carry Missouri Grown products. The Missouri Grown Retail Promotion Matching Grant awards up to $1,000 per retail store for reimbursement of expenses associated with promoting Missouri Grown member products.

“Our Missouri Grown members have told us that placing product in retail stores is one of the biggest challenges to their future growth,” said Director of Agriculture Chris Chinn. “With this new grant opportunity, we’ve identified willing business owners that want to solve that challenge. I’m excited to see the growing opportunity pay off for our small businesses, while helping consumers find Missouri products.”

The grant funds are being awarded to retail stores of all sizes. The competitive grant program provides advertising funds to Missouri retail stores that sell products from a minimum of five Missouri Grown member companies. Stores represented include single locations, as well as the Pyramid Foods family in southwest Missouri, which includes Price Cutter, Ramey and Country Mart locations.

“Pyramid Foods is proud to be born and raised in the Ozarks since 1967 and employee owned since 2005,” said Samantha Richardson, Pyramid Foods Advertising and Marketing Manager. “When you shop at our locally owned company, the money stays right here at home, creating hundreds of jobs for our community and allows us to give back. We’re very excited to partner with Missouri Grown to promote eating fresh and supporting local, family farms.”

The grant also raises awareness to communities about the products grown, raised and produced by members of the Missouri Grown program. The grant also improves understanding of raising food and promotes agriculture in those communities.

“We are beyond excited to be able to partner with the Missouri Department of Agriculture to promote and market Missouri Grown products,” said Linda Studer of Mississippi Marketplace in Hannibal, Mo. “We currently carry several products from all over the state and this grant will allow us to showcase these products not only to our local customers, but also to the tourists that visit us from all over the world.”

The 2021 grant recipients are:

• St. James Winery, St. James
• Missouri’s Trading Post, Hermann
• Green Dirt Farm Creamery, Weston
• Midwest Specialty Foods, Lee’s Summit
• Patterson Family General Store, Wildwood
• Pyramid Foods, Rogersville
• Botanical Tea Room, Augusta
• Mississippi Marketplace, Hannibal
• Lucky Snipe Trading Post, Tipton
• Hen House Cannery and Goods, Bonne Terre
• Green Hills Fresh Meats, Brookfield
• Country Living General Store, Washington
• Maw Maw’s Cupboard, Warrenton

“The Missouri Grown program has been a valuable partner in the growth of our family-owned business over the past several years, and we look forward to strengthening this relationship at our new retail location,” said Kim Force, owner of Lucky Snipe Trading Post in Tipton, Mo. “This grant will enable us to permanently showcase these products and the entire Missouri Grown program, as well as expand our product line to include more delicious products made right here in the Show-Me State.”

Missouri Grown is a program of the Missouri Department of Agriculture that represents nearly 1,000 small businesses in food, agriculture and agritourism. From pears to pork, hundreds of fresh and nutritious products are grown by the men and women of Missouri agriculture. When you pick Missouri Grown products, you show your state pride and support your neighbors — the farmers and business owners who make Missouri so great. To learn more about the Missouri Grown program, visit MissouriGrownUSA.com.

For more information on the Department and its programs, visit Agriculture.Mo.Gov.