Rural Grocery Initiative

Rural Grocery Initiative RGI aims to sustain locally-owned rural groceries to enhance community vitality & access to healthy food.

Welcome to the official Kansas State University Rural Grocery Initiative Facebook account! We encourage thoughtful discussion and interaction relevant to the purpose of the page. The purpose of Kansas State University social media pages is limited to focusing on the university's mission, goals, and programs. Content must be relevant to the topic discussed, relevant to this particular page, and to the point. Content that is excessively long or repetitive is subject to removal. Content that is profane, threatening, obscene, a violation of intellectual property rights or privacy laws, creating a security or privacy risk, spam, defamatory, infringing on another person's rights, commercial advertising by a third party, otherwise violates local, county, state or federal laws, or incites or solicits illegal conduct or violence, is prohibited. By posting content to the site, you represent that you own or otherwise have all the rights necessary to lawfully use that content and/or that the use of the content is permitted by fair use, as applicable. The university reserves the right to remove any material for nonconformity with this policy. Users acknowledge that the security of the site cannot be guaranteed, that use of the site is voluntary, and assume the risks associated with such use, releasing and holding harmless the university from any and all claims related thereto. The university does not necessarily endorse, support, agree with, or verify the validity of the content shared on its social media sites by users. The appearance of comments, external hyperlinks, or any information contained within "follows", "likes", "retweets" and similar actions on social media pages do not necessarily constitute endorsement or support by the university. If you have questions, please contact socialmedia@k-state.edu.

Thank you to these silver level sponsors of the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit that are supporting our mission to he...
03/31/2026

Thank you to these silver level sponsors of the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit that are supporting our mission to help sustain locally-owned rural grocery stores across the nation! Stop by their booths at our exhibitor fair to thank them for their support and learn more about their work.

We are excited to announce our next keynote for the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit! 🌟 Across the country, 2.9 millio...
03/27/2026

We are excited to announce our next keynote for the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit! 🌟 Across the country, 2.9 million businesses are operated by individuals at or near retirement age, signaling a significant shift in business ownership on the horizon. Rural grocery stores are no exception. Grocers in these communities face distinct and complex challenges as they plan to exit their business and ensure their towns retain a vibrant, locally owned store. This keynote panel will lift up three rural grocers who are actively integrating transition planning into the successful operation of their store, offering practical insights on how to prepare the future while sustaining the store today.

Panelists:
🌟 Regena Lance, Mildred Store, Mildred, KS
🌟 DuWayne Ditterich, Ditterich Mercantile and Family Farm, Vergas, MN
🌟 Pat Tracy, Tracy's Market, Maddock, ND
🌟 Carly Whorton, Grocery Consultant and Transition Coach, Holton, KS

Learn more about the speakers here: https://www.ruralgrocery.org/summit/speakers.html

Check out this article featuring an interview with our Program Director Rial Carver to hear about highlights of the upco...
03/23/2026

Check out this article featuring an interview with our Program Director Rial Carver to hear about highlights of the upcoming National Rural Grocery Summit!

The National Rural Grocery Summit brings together community leaders and grocers on May 5-7 in Fargo to share valuable insights.

03/09/2026

🚨 The early bird registration deadline is almost here for the National Rural Grocery Summit! If you're planning on joining us in Fargo, you will want to register by March 15th here: https://www.ruralgrocery.org/summit/register/

Thank you to these bronze level sponsors of the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit that are supporting our mission to he...
03/05/2026

Thank you to these bronze level sponsors of the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit that are supporting our mission to help sustain locally-owned rural grocery stores across the nation! Look out for representatives from these organizations at the Summit.

⭐ ECRS
⭐ Minnesota Department of Agriculture
⭐ North Dakota Dept. of Commerce
⭐ NDSU Extension
⭐ The Food Trust
⭐ U of MN Extension Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships
⭐ Upstream Strategies

🚨 Don't forget to register soon for the National Rural Grocery Summit! Early bird rates end March 15th. Register here: h...
03/04/2026

🚨 Don't forget to register soon for the National Rural Grocery Summit! Early bird rates end March 15th. Register here: https://www.ruralgrocery.org/summit/register/

The Rural Grocery Initiative is excited to co-host the 2026 Summit with two organizations that have a long history of supporting rural grocers in their states: the U of MN Extension Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships and the NDAREC.

This year's Summit includes four tours to innovative grocery stores in Minnesota and North Dakota, over 25 breakout sessions, countless opportunities for networking, learning and more! 🌟

Our team is excited to be participating in this webinar to share about the role of grocers in Food is Medicine. Register...
03/04/2026

Our team is excited to be participating in this webinar to share about the role of grocers in Food is Medicine. Register at the link below to listen in on March 18th!

Save the Date! Join us for the next webinar in our Foundations of Food is Medicine Learning Series.

Role of Producers, Processors & Grocers in Food is Medicine

This session will explore the role of producers, processors, and grocery retailers in advancing Food is Medicine in Kansas. We'll highlight how partnerships across the food supply chain and healthcare sector have the potential to strengthen rural grocery infrastructure and local growers while also expanding access to healthy foods in our communities.

Time: 1 p.m. CT
Date: March 18
Register: https://bit.ly/4rh1C9a

Looking for an economical way to get to the National Rural Grocery Summit? New this year, the Rural Grocery Initiative i...
03/02/2026

Looking for an economical way to get to the National Rural Grocery Summit? New this year, the Rural Grocery Initiative is chartering a bus for attendees traveling to Fargo! The bus will depart on May 4th from Wichita, KS, make a stop in Kansas City and Council Bluffs, IA, then continue on to Fargo, ND where the conference will be held. The bus will return on May 8th. Save your seat on the bus here: https://www.ruralgrocery.org/summit/travel-support/

*Note that a bus ticket does not constitute event registration. Registration for the National Rural Grocery Summit must be completed separately here: https://www.ruralgrocery.org/summit/register/

Thank you to these sponsors of the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit that are supporting our mission to help sustain lo...
02/18/2026

Thank you to these sponsors of the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit that are supporting our mission to help sustain locally-owned rural grocery stores across the nation!

⭐ North Central Regional Center for Rural Development
⭐ Natural Grocers
⭐ Minnkota Power Cooperative
⭐ Network Kansas
⭐ North Dakota Department of Agriculture

Are you interested in applying for the Kansas Healthy Food Initiative's Predevelopment Technical Assistance Grant? If so...
02/11/2026

Are you interested in applying for the Kansas Healthy Food Initiative's Predevelopment Technical Assistance Grant? If so, you may want to attend our open office hours to ask questions about your project idea and eligibility. We are hosting two more office hours before the application deadline of February 27th. Register for the Zoom link to attend our optional office hours from 11 AM to 12 PM Central Time on February 12th and February 26th here: https://ksu.zoom.us/meeting/register/MJJpk_yKTbeqnySNli0r3A

Join us for one of four pre-conference rural grocery tours ahead of the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit! 🚌🛒 From tour...
02/06/2026

Join us for one of four pre-conference rural grocery tours ahead of the 2026 National Rural Grocery Summit! 🚌🛒 From touring a unique self-serve grocery store with a 24-hour model to visiting one of the members of the innovative Rural Access Distribution (RAD) Cooperative, there is so much to see while you are in the area. Learn more about each of the four tour options here: https://www.ruralgrocery.org/summit/agenda/

*Note: If you want to join us for a tour, you must sign up when registering for the Summit here: https://www.ruralgrocery.org/summit/register/

Did you know we have a rural grocery policy tracker? This resource is intended to help stakeholders stay informed of rec...
02/02/2026

Did you know we have a rural grocery policy tracker? This resource is intended to help stakeholders stay informed of recently proposed or enacted legislation impacting rural grocers and their communities. Learn more and access the tracker at https://www.ruralgrocery.org/learn/policy-tracker/

Note: The Rural Grocery Initiative does not advocate for or against nor endorse any policy listed in this tracker.

Address

Manhattan, KS
66506

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

Telephone

(785) 532-6868

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