Minnesota Agencies

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture convened the working group to help prepare a mandated report, due February 1, 2020, about how best to address "emerging farmers" in Minnesota and the future of farming in the state generally. The group was formally established in law in 2020 and must now assist the commissioner to update the chairs and ranking minority members of the legislative committees and divisions with jurisdiction over agriculture regarding the working group's activities and recommendations by January 15 of each year.

In 2019, the Legislature directed the Department of Agriculture to write a report on "emerging farmers" in five priority areas: women, veterans, persons with disabilities, American Indian or Alaskan Native, and members of communities of color. The Department held listening sessions throughout the state as they gathered information for their report, and the definition of "emerging farmer" expanded throughout the listening sessions.

The working group's final report defines "emerging farmers" as "both those individuals who are entirely new to farming as well as those individuals who have been farming for generations but were outside the scope of traditional state and Federal agricultural support programs."

The report made many recommendations, among them that an emerging farmers task force be created to "provide guidance to the Commissioner of Agriculture on developing programs and initiatives that support emerging farmers."

In 2020, the Legislature formally established the working group in law (see Laws of Minnesota 2020, chap. 89, art. 4, sec. 2 and Minn. Stat. 17.055).

In 2019, the Department of Agriculture held six listening sessions, led by Assistant Commissioner of Agriculture Patrice Bailey, to inform their work on a report mandated by the Legislature in 2019.

The group was formally established in law in 2020, and the inaugural working group members were appointed in October 2020. They include:

• Gina Aguilar, Hennepin County
• Hannah Bernhardt, Pine County
• Elizabeth Bryant, Rice County
• Naima Dhore, Ramsey County
• Jessika Greendeer, Washington County
• Janssen Hang, Dakota County
• Denise King, Anoka County
• Lucas Kruse, Blue Earth County
• Erika Legros, Carlton County
• Moses Momanyi, Isanti County
• Hindolo Pokawa, Hennepin County
• Emily Reno, Otter Tail County
• Sai Thao, Dakota County
• Miah Ulysse, Ramsey County
• Michael Walgrave, Rock County
• Kaitlyn Walsh, Carlton County
• Shelly Woods, Sibley County