https://meettheminnesotamakers.com/, https://linktr.ee/MeetTheMNMakers

Meet the Minnesota Makers, Eagan, MN (2025)

10/30/2025

Ever think of drinking as an agricultural act?

The founding of America’s only certified Bee-Friendly Farm Distillery began with a homework assignment.

Cheri Reese and Mike Swanson, owners of Far North Spirits , were living in St. Paul following careers in marketing and communications. Mike was pursuing an MBA from the University of St. Thomas where his entrepreneurial class project included a business plan for a distillery that grew its own grain.

A few years later, Cheri and Mike moved to his family farm in Minnesota’s Red River Valley where the Swansons have farmed since 1917. There, they planted rye and corn in the midst of longstanding wheat, soybean, and canola fields. They also built a distillery.

“Sometimes it feels like that scene from Field of Dreams where they plowed the corn under to build the baseball field,” says Cheri of the distillery they named Far North–a tribute to its remote location 25 miles from the Canadian border.

It’s unique enough for a distiller to make spirits using locally-sourced grains but for that maker to grow the grain themselves is extremely rare.

To develop the best rye for their whiskey, Far North partnered with a small-grains specialist at the University of Minnesota. “We taste-tested the varieties with about 200 people from all over the country. The study helped us definitively answer ‘yes’ to the question: ‘does the rye variety alone affect whiskey’s flavor?’”

Far North’s pursuit of incredible spirits doesn’t stop there. Their commitment to agriculture also includes certified, sustainable farming practices that promote soil health and ecological diversity.

“There’s a lot of smoke and mirrors in this business,” says Cheri. “We actually grow the grain and distill it ourselves. We know our grain and have chosen it intentionally. We’re changing the conversation about how whiskey is made.”

Full article and a recipe for “The Farmer’s Handshake” in Vol 8 of FEAST Local Foods Network magazine. Links at meettheminnesotamakers.com

Join Cheri and Mike in their Scandinavian-inspired tasting room in Hallock or meet them at FEAST! Local Foods Marketplace, Nov 1 in Rochester.

10/23/2025

Have we convinced you to attend FEAST! 2025 with the 100 food, beer, wine, and spirit vendors, the hundreds of products to sample and purchase, and the 60 engaging volunteers?

If you need a few more numbers to Feast! upon…
*$0
The cost of admission for kids 12 and under. Bring them to explore the activity tables, sampling and education designed just for your budding foodie.

*10 giveaways throughout the day
Each giveaway is packed with goodies from vendors at LocalFeast! Cast your ballot in our People’s Choice voting for a chance to win.

Those 10 giveaways are in addition to the many free tickets and FEAST Bucks giveaways leading up to the festival!

*800 limited edition tote bags
We’ll have you shopping in style with our fun reusable pumpkin totes.

Bring your own reusable totes as well so you have an extra bag at the ready when you park the full one at the bag check. Bonus points if it’s a tote bag from a previous Feast! Marketplace. 🙂

*4,400 public parking spaces
There are several ramps and surface lots in downtown Rochester. Finding a place to park for the event is easy, free or reasonably priced, and quite possibly connected through skyways.

People’s Choice Voting will be open throughout the day—this year with a volunteer helping input votes. There’s no limit to the number of times you can vote to support your favorite makers, and each vote puts you in the running to win a gift basket!

Join us Saturday, November 1 from 10am-4pm at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, MN. There’s still time to grab a volunteer spot for free admission and a 2025 t-shirt—find the link at local-feast.org/festival.

Get tickets in advance for a discount at https://www.local-feast.org/buytickets until 6pm Friday 10/31, or at the door.

Check back for our final post with more numbers to Feast! upon!!

Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation Renewing the Countryside Downtown Rochester, Minnesota Minnesota Grown

10/23/2025

This story starts with a couple of 25 gallon fish tanks in a St. Olaf dorm room.

Swipe through to see the real fish tank in action!

Ian Roback founded Owatonna-based Clear Water Nitrate Reduction from the results of an independent research project in his dorm room. Having expanded from a few fish to entire fields of corn, CWNR offers solutions in wood debris utilization, biochar expertise and water quality.

You need a very large carbon source to soak up the nutrients coming off the farms’ fields. Instead of disposing of wood waste in landfills, it can be chipped and put into use in Clear Water Nitrate Reduction’s practices.

CWNR works with local Soil and Water Conservation Districts and local contractors for installation. Once in place, the system can be left untouched for ten years. When removed the wood waste can actually be reused as fertilizer or compost.

“I’m very happy that we have solutions that create real large-scale impact. I’m always proud whenever we finish a project and get the results back for testing. We see that it makes a huge impact. Just a few years ago I was just saying that I hope I can do this,” shares Ian. “Whenever we do a project we’re benefitting our client as well as the community as a whole.”

CWNR is a graduate of the 2023 cohort of the . Founded by Community and Economic Development Associates (CEDA) , RBIL is a cohort-based, entrepreneurial program that redefines the narrative of rural decline.

Ian emphasized the power of seeing other entrepreneurs’ struggles. “It can be really easy to feel alone in agriculture because everything is geographically spaced out,” explains Ian. “We’re trying to create innovation in areas that may be rooted in convention. RBIL has helped me learn how to clearly market our brand to make connections. I feel like I am moving towards a more unified image of the company. This has been especially helpful.”

Visit https://nitratereduction.com to see how Clear Water’s program would work at your farm.

Post nine of nine in this rural business series!

Full feature at meettheminnesotamakers.com

10/22/2025

Time to talk about the “Secret Sauce.”

FEAST! on THESE numbers!!

🤩 60 dedicated volunteers
From check in to bag check, vendor support to people’s choice voting help, cooking demo samples to setting up and taking down, 60 dedicated volunteers work on site Friday and Saturday to make the magic of the Feast! Local Foods Marketplace possible.

🤩 143 volunteer hours

Starting Friday night, those 60 volunteers will work all throughout the Mayo Civic Center to make the event run smoothly both for guests and vendors. We couldn’t do it without you!

🤩 15 volunteers at bag and bottle check

The bag and bottle check will be open throughout the entire day to make your shopping easy. Drop your purchases off at any time and pick up by 4pm.

People’s Choice Voting will be open throughout the day—this year with a volunteer helping input votes (Psst! It’s all online this year, folks, no more paper ballots!). 👀There’s no limit to the number of times you can vote to support your favorite makers, and each vote puts you in the running to win a gift basket!

Join us Saturday, November 1 from 10am-4pm at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, MN. There’s still time to grab a volunteer spot for free admission and a 2025 t-shirt—find the link at https://www.local-feast.org/festival.
Get tickets in advance for a discount at https://www.local-feast.org/buytickets until 6pm Friday 10/31, or at the door.

Check back for our next post with more numbers to Feast! upon!!

Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation Renewing the Countryside Downtown Rochester, Minnesota Minnesota Grown Rochester Local Experience Rochester, MN

10/21/2025

FEAST! on THESE numbers!!

🥂 17 unique craft alcohol makers under one roof.
Sample a new-to-you brew, find tasty pairings for your winter meals and discover stellar host gifts that guarantee you’ll be invited back. Feast! Local Foods Marketplace festival is sure to introduce you to a new favorite! Purchase up to 6 bottles of wine, cider, or beer, and NEW this year—purchase spirits through Andy's Liquor online and pick up in store after the fest or opt for delivery!

🥂 500 limited-edition commemorative glasses
Your VIP entry (required to sample alcohol on site) includes a commemorative tasting glass with this year’s fresh pumpkin logo. Reserve yours in advance to ensure you can sample in style.

🥂 1 bag check
Shop and sample with ease while you leave your purchases at our staffed bag check. Feast! Marketplace volunteers will keep your bags and bottles sorted and safe while you take your time exploring the vendors.

People’s Choice Voting will be open throughout the day. There’s no limit to the number of times you can vote to support your favorite winemakers, brewers and distillers.

Join us Saturday, November 1 from 10am-4pm at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, MN. Get tickets in advance for a discount at https://www.local-feast.org/buytickets until 6pm Friday 10/31, or at the door.

Check back for our next post with more numbers to Feast! upon!!

Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation Renewing the Countryside Downtown Rochester, Minnesota Minnesota Grown Experience Rochester, MN

10/21/2025

For this Minnesota small business, apples are the “core” for building community.

Nick Revoir of Annandale’s Simple Cider Co produces single-ingredient pressed apple juice. That juice is his key for creating community connections, especially among families with young children.

Nick’s vision is that the adults can be an adult just as much as the kids can be kids within their cidery. Simple Cider Co will be a playground for all ages. “We are an apple juice provider right now and we hope to start a cidery that helps eliminate the social isolation of having young children.”

“Half of our company is about the apples. The other half is the space,” explains Nick. “The space will be for all generations of a family. It will be a place of wonder. It will be built as a safe place for the kids to be themselves while adult friends connect.”

It starts with their farmers market stand. The Simple Cider Co booth invites passersby with hula hoops, a picnic table with crayons and a chair for adults. “We invite people to come sit down for a minute, let your kid play and just exist,” says Nick. “We make our corner of the farmers market a community space for a few hours.”

Simple Cider Co is a graduate of the 2024 Rural Business Innovation Lab cohort. Founded by Community and Economic Development Associates (CEDA) RBIL is a cohort-based, entrepreneurial program that redefines the narrative of rural decline.

Working with RBIL coaches shortened their timeline of building their space. “When I think about anyone starting anything new, it’s sometimes that prod behind you saying, ‘Come on, don’t stop. Keep going. We want to see that space be real. We know you want to do it,’ that makes all the difference.”

Nick observed the tremendous value of connecting with the other members of his cohort, “There’s this strange magic when you get makers together that is a beacon of wishing everyone else success and ‘giving away’ your processes and secrets to enrich each others’ lives!”

Enjoy Simple Cider Co at the Annandale Farmers Market and the Maple Lake Makers and Growers Market. Visit https://www.simpleciderco.com

Post eight of nine in this rural business series.

Full feature meettheminnesotamakers.com

🍎

10/20/2025

Feast! on these numbers!!

*82 food and non-alcoholic beverage booths from Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

With sweet and savory goodies from chocolate to black garlic, organic mushrooms to fresh baked goods, elderberry syrup to Nepali dumplings, Feast! Local Foods Marketplace festival is sure to introduce you to a new favorite!

*5 cooking demos

Meet professional chefs and get their expert tips on using local foods…and for the first time ever, our lineup includes a mixology demo!. Sample the creations and find the ingredients among the vendors in the exhibit hall. Learn new techniques, discover fun ingredients and try some new flavors this fall. Find details at local-feast.org/festival.

*1 bag check

Shop and sample with ease while you leave your purchases at our staffed bag check. Feast! Marketplace volunteers will keep your bags sorted and safe while you take your time exploring the vendors.

Join us Saturday, November 1 from 10am-4pm at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, MN. Get tickets in advance for a discount at https://www.local-feast.org/buytickets until 6pm Friday 10/31, or at the door on 11/1.

Check back for our next post with more numbers to Feast! upon!!

Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation Renewing the Countryside Downtown Rochester, Minnesota Minnesota Grown Meet the Minnesota Makers

10/14/2025

A real live wool baroness!

Theresa Bentz of Get Bentz Farm builds an interactive agricultural experience in the hills outside Northfield. Grass-fed sheep battle invasive species, on-farm fiber art days encourage community, discard wool becomes garden food and two city kids experiment daily with their hypothesis about a different way to live.

At the start, the farm focused on pasture-raised direct-to-consumer sheep and lamb meat sold at farmers markets. They raise their flock following sustainable practices of rotating pastures and allowing the sheep to browse a diverse array of plants. Their lamb is regularly on Northfield’s Ole Store’s menu, including custom brats.

Being recognized as an agricultural producer when the farm shifted into fiber arts proved to be a challenge. “I had to fight pretty hard to get into farmers markets and not be seen as a crafter,” states Theresa. “Textiles are agricultural products. We’ve largely become very disconnected from our textile production just like we have with large scale food production.”

Theresa uses both wool from her flock and fleece purchased from shepherds throughout the region to create her signature products. “I love that I’ve become a producer of yarn in our industry,” smiles Theresa. “I enjoy having control over the end product. I get to collaborate to create something that people use.”

Get Bentz is a graduate of the 2024 cohort of the . Founded by Community and Economic Development Associates (CEDA) , RBIL is a cohort-based, entrepreneurial program that redefines the narrative of rural decline.

The content and interactions of the RBIL program helped Theresa recognize what she did and, perhaps even more importantly, what she did not want to do for their business. “The coaches at RBIL helped me push myself into areas where I didn’t think I was going to be comfortable,” says Theresa. “The coaches helped us sort out what parts of our business we wanted to scale up and what was as big as we want it to be.”

Sign up for the newsletter at https://getbentzfarm.com

Find Get Bentz at Linden Hills Farmers Market and Mill City Farmers Market.

Full feature at meettheminnesotamakers.com

Post seven of nine in the rural business series.

10/11/2025

Tyler Saemrow of Morristown’s Ty's Ginseng learned to grow ginseng under his grandfather’s tutelage starting when he was 10 years old. “I love being out in the woods and simply watching our plants grow. It takes time, lots of it, but it’s so worth it.”

“The best part about growing ginseng is that I am able to work with my grandpa, mom and dad every day,” shares Tyler. “Not too many people can say that.”

Every year Tyler assumed more responsibility with the process. Accompanying his grandfather on a sales trip during his senior year of high school brought the whole cycle to life.

After that trip, Tyler and his grandfather planted a new ginseng field on his dad’s dairy farm. His grandfather told Tyler that that was his woods. When those roots were ready to harvest in 2020, sales trips were not possible due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Looking locally for customers, they applied to the Minneapolis Farmers Market. They’ve been there ever since sharing their harvest in both whole root and ground powdered form.

“It's still hard even with our combined 70 years of experience,” states Tyler. “Every year we have a new challenge. It's like, why did those seeds not sprout? Why did this section not come up this year? You have to be patient and wait. Your plans go through a lot in the six to seven years that it takes for the roots to be ready.”

Ty’s Ginseng is a member of the 2025 cohort of the Rural Business Innovation Lab. Established in 2022 by Community and Economic Development Associates (CEDA) , RBIL is a cohort-based, entrepreneurial program that redefines the narrative of rural decline.

The desire to make Ty’s Ginseng a sustainable business made Tyler think that RBIL’s program could pull them closer to their goals. “Meeting with the coaches gives me a different head space, a different perspective on how we could be marketing our ginseng,” explains Tyler. “It’s amazing to have the reassurance of talking with someone who knows the bigger picture and helps you sort through possibilities for moving your business forward.”

Find Ty’s Ginseng at the Minneapolis Farmers Market or order at www.tysginseng.com

Full feature at meettheminnesotamakers.com

This is post six of nine in the rural business series.

10/07/2025

The garlic lifestyle is the cornerstone of the Olberding Family’s Rustic Roots Farm - MN in Alexandria, MN.

Featured growers since the 2022 Minnesota Garlic Festival and Best in Show awardees in 2023, their 11 varieties of garlic thrive in farmland the family restored to a fertile landscape.

Beginning farmers together, all four family members invest in the best practices to let their specialty crops thrive. Since 2016 they’ve built high tunnels, tapped trees for syrup, planted asparagus, powdered garlic to reduce food waste, established mushroom logs, built a farm stand and created custom spice blends.

Julie expresses a sense of wonder about their specialty crops, “I find joy in watching the process of growing evolve from working the soil to planting the seed (or clove) through harvest. Each time, I start with a blank slate. With some careful nurturing, I grow something beautiful that can be enjoyed by many.”

Garlic bulbs that are too small for retail become one of four varieties of garlic powder, which have been purchased by foodies and home cooks throughout the US. The family peels and prepares all of their garlic for their powders, which are one hundred percent dehydrated garlic for Gourmet Garlic Powder, Roasted Garlic Powder, Smoked Garlic Powder and a beautifully green Garlic Scape Powder.

Rustic Roots Farm is a graduate of the 2024 cohort of the . Established in 2022 by Community and Economic Development Associates (CEDA) , RBIL is a cohort-based, entrepreneurial program that redefines the narrative of rural decline.

Rustic Roots applied to RBIL’s program to improve their business management skills. These were instrumental in helping their small farm scale up its operation. “We wanted to increase our overall revenue so that we as owners would no longer have to finance routine operations,” explains Julie. “We haven’t made an owner’s contribution to the business in several months! As self-taught beginning farmers, this is such an incredible feeling.”

Join their newsletter at rusticrootsfarmmn.com for on-farm events and seasonal specials.

Full feature at meettheminnesotamakers.com

This is post five of nine in this series! Check back for more local heroes.

10/07/2025

The garlic lifestyle is the cornerstone of the Olberding Family’s in Alexandria, MN.

Featured growers since the 2022 Minnesota Garlic Festival and Best in Show awardees in 2023, their 11 varieties of garlic thrive in farmland the family restored to a fertile landscape.

Beginning farmers together, all four family members invest in the best practices to let their specialty crops thrive. Since 2016 they’ve built high tunnels, tapped trees for syrup, planted asparagus, powdered garlic to reduce food waste, established mushroom logs, built a farm stand and created custom spice blends.

Julie expresses a sense of wonder about their specialty crops, “I find joy in watching the process of growing evolve from working the soil to planting the seed (or clove) through harvest. Each time, I start with a blank slate. With some careful nurturing, I grow something beautiful that can be enjoyed by many.”

Garlic bulbs that are too small for retail become one of four varieties of garlic powder, which have been purchased by foodies and home cooks throughout the US. The family peels and prepares all of their garlic for their powders, which are one hundred percent dehydrated garlic for Gourmet Garlic Powder, Roasted Garlic Powder, Smoked Garlic Powder and a beautifully green Garlic Scape Powder.

Rustic Roots Farm is a graduate of the 2024 cohort of the . Established in 2022 by RBIL is a cohort-based, entrepreneurial program that redefines the narrative of rural decline.

Rustic Roots applied to RBIL’s program to improve their business management skills. These were instrumental in helping their small farm scale up its operation. “We wanted to increase our overall revenue so that we as owners would no longer have to finance routine operations,” explains Julie. “We haven’t made an owner’s contribution to the business in several months! As self-taught beginning farmers, this is such an incredible feeling.”

Join their newsletter at rusticrootsfarmmn.com for on-farm events and seasonal specials.

Full feature at meettheminnesotamakers.com

This is post five of nine in this series! Check back for more local heroes.

Meet the Minnesota Makers

10/30/2025

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