Meet the Farmers

Aung Thin

Aung Thing of Karen Family Farm is living out his dream. “I want to be a happy old farmer, and change people’s minds to show them that you can be happy,” he said.

Choua & Xou

Choua, a teacher with the Hmong Charter School in St. Paul, looks forward to planting season in spring time each year. She and her husband, Xou, found out about Minnesota Food Association (MFA) through the Hmong American Partnership (HAP) at a workshop in 2016, and in 2017 enrolled in the Organic Transitions program.

Lue and Kia

A man with “a passion for the outdoors, the sun and the wind,” Lue has found his work at MFA to be very satisfying. His goals are to complete the training program at MFA and acquire his own farm, which will enable him “to give back” and contribute to community health as well as feed his own family. Every day, in pursuit of his dream, he is “up before the sun,” Lue’s son Houa reports. You have to “beat the heat,” says Lue, “if you love the land and work.