With the days starting to get longer, I am reminded of how soon the HAFA Farm will open. Coordinating the farmer trainings during these winter months has shown me how critical it is for farmers of all ages and backgrounds to pursue community and knowledge with other growers. On top of this, many of the trainings have […]
We can say that we actually have a farm now
We gathered together at the HAFA farmhouse on Monday, October 19th to reflect on the waning season. It was also the annual land lottery where farmers could to choose to stay on their 5 acre plot or switch to another plot on the HAFA Farm. Mai Moua has been farming in Minnesota since 2005 and grows dozens […]
I honor anyone who works with their hands
Dave Wolner is excited. A career carpenter and leader in the Carpenters Union Local 322, he now finds himself inspired to build bridges to the good jobs in the trades unions with youth in the YouthBuild program at Saint Paul’s first charter school, City Academy. This fall, Dave helped City Academy team up with HAFA […]
We can do it right here
This fall, Mai Houa joined the HAFA staff as a packing assistant. She helps the Hmong farmers in HAFA’s Food Hub pack their produce and sell them to schools, retailers, wholesalers and other institutions. She never thought that she would be a farmer, but two years ago, she began helping her husband and in-laws grow […]
Why do Hmong farmers need their own organization?
Our communities of partners — like you — know that we are all lifted higher when those most affected by an unfair food system lead the change we seek. Many farmers who are not Hmong often ask us if they can join HAFA or if there is a comparable organization in their own ethnic communities. But […]
LEDC Farmers Marketing Cooperative
Watch this great video about a project our wonderful partner and ally, the Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC), is working on! The Latino Economic Development Center (LECD) is a nonprofit business development organization that offers support to Latino entrepreneurs who want to create their own business in the Twin Cities and throughout rural Minnesota. LEDC’s […]
New partnerships, hope for sustainable Hmong farming businesses
Two years ago, the Hmong American Farmers Association (HAFA) began delivering five dollar bags of fresh, locally grown produce to St. Paul Public Housing residents. It was a pilot project to get nutritious produce to low-mobility customers as well as build additional markets that could help sustain Hmong American family farming in Minnesota. Today, the […]
The HAFA CSA: God Made A Hmong Farmer
Watch our new video God Made A Hmong Farmer and join the HAFA CSA today! Many thanks photographers Darren Hauck, Wing Young Huie, Mike Kane and Mike Hazard for the beautiful images.
We are dedicated to advancing the prosperity of Hmong farmers through cooperative endeavors, capacity building and advocacy. HAFA was started and is led by family farmers. Organizing is in our DNA.