After one year, Indiana Grown campaign helps Goshen orchard boom

For the past year, the Indiana Grown initiative has helped Hoosiers find local produce and agricultural products grown right in the state. And now the numbers are in on how a Michiana orchard has benefited.

The Indiana Grown campaign has really paid off for Sunrise Orchards. According to the state department of agriculture, they've increased sales to one retailer by more than 300 percent.

It's all about getting more people to buy local. The department of agriculture program uses Indiana Grown stickers to alert customers which produce is from within the state.  

It also helps more local orchards and farms get into grocery stores and retail. The program has only been around for a year, but Goshen's Sunrise Orchards says it didn't take long to see the results.

"It's been a huge benefit for us to get our story out there and to advertise that we are from Indiana," said Bill Kercher of Kercher Sunrise Orchards. "We are growing this produce in Indiana, and there is not a lot of food miles on it before it gets to somebody's table."

The statewide initiative now includes more than 500 members, adding approximately one member per day.