Local farmers and restaurateurs suffer in the drought

KANSAS CITY, Mo - The drought is having a costly affect on the local farmers markets and locally stocked restaurants.

The heat is reducing the shelf life of some produce while other fruits and vegetables aren't growing in the fields because it’s so hot and dry.

Jane Zieha has owned the Blue Bird Bistro on 17th and Summit for 11 years. Her menu changes each day, based on the availability of locally grown produce.

"We're a farm to table restaurant,” Zieha said. “It is buying what is available locally from farmers in your area and preparing it from scratch and offering in the restaurant."

Zieha says the drought has created a challenge when it comes to what type of produce that is available.
In a 200 mile radius, a lot of her farmers are growing the same items because it’s too hot and dry to grow anything else.
Those same items are also scarce at the City Market. Vendors like Benjamin Wisdom have started ordering food from California and Texas to meet the needs of customers.

"A lot of corn is dried up,” Wisdom said. “A lot of cantaloupes have not been here plentiful like they have before in the past. The heats affected the crops a lot.”

Ordering food from other states is not an option for Zieha's bistro. Instead, her staff creates healthy new ways of serving what area farmers are able to grow.