From a Tobacco Barn to a 15,000-Sq-Ft Market: Cornett Farm Fresh

In the hills of Laurel County, where tobacco once ruled and small farms struggled to stay afloat, Rhonda and Brent Cornett have built something nobody expected — and everyone needed.

Born from a Crisis

When COVID-19 disrupted supply chains in 2020, grocery stores in London, Kentucky couldn't keep shelves stocked. Rhonda Cornett, who had been raising produce on the family's 250-acre farm, saw her neighbors struggling to find fresh food. She cleared out a corner of the old tobacco barn and set up a farmstand.

"It was just a table with some tomatoes and corn," she recalls. "But people kept coming."

Growing Into a Community Hub

That farmstand didn't stay small for long. Word spread through Laurel County, and what started as a roadside table grew into a 15,000-square-foot farm-to-table market, bakery, and cafe. Today, Cornett Farm Fresh features 44 local vendors — everyone from beekeepers to jam makers to Appalachian crafters.

The market has become more than a place to buy groceries. It's where London gathers. On weekends, families come for the cafe's country breakfast, linger over fresh-baked pies, and stock up on locally raised meats and produce that never saw the inside of a distribution warehouse.

Recognition on the National Stage

In 2025, the U.S. Small Business Administration named Cornett Farm Fresh its Women-Owned Business of the Year — a national honor that brought attention to what rural Kentucky has always known: when communities take care of each other, extraordinary things happen.

For Rhonda, the award was validation not just for her business, but for every vendor under her roof. "This isn't just our success," she says. "It's 44 families making a living doing what they love."

The Bigger Picture

Cornett Farm Fresh is a case study in rural reinvention. In a region where the decline of tobacco and coal left economic voids, the Cornetts proved that agriculture could evolve — not by abandoning the land, but by reimagining what it could produce.

Their 250 acres now grow everything from seasonal vegetables to specialty herbs, and the market has created a viable path for small producers who previously had no way to reach customers.

Visit

Cornett Farm Fresh is located on Highway 192 in London, Kentucky. The market is open Tuesday through Saturday, and the cafe serves breakfast and lunch daily.

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If you're passing through southeastern Kentucky, this is worth the detour.