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I: 
Community 
Assistantship 
Program 
Initiatives: Linking Sustainable 
Agricultural and Natural Resources 
Opportunities in Southeast Minnesota 
with the University of Minnesota 
The Community Assistantship Program 1s made possible by the generous support of the McKnight 
Foundation, the Otto Bremer Foundation, the Southern Initiative Fund, the Initiative Foundation, the 
Southwest Minnesota Foundation, the Northwest Minnesota Foundation, and the West Central Initiative 
Fund. Within the University of Minnesota, support is provided by Central Administration, the Rural 
Development Council. the College of Human Ecology, the University of Minnesota Extension Service, the 
College of Natural Resources, the College of Education and Human Development, the College of 
Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, the 
College of Liberal Arts, the College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, the Carlson School of 
Management, the Center for Small Towns, the Center for Urban and Regional Affairs, and the five 
Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships. 
CAP 015 
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Initiatives: Linking Sustainable 
Agricultural and Natural Resources 
Opportunities in Southeast Minnesota 
with the University of Minnesota 
Conducted on behalf of 
Experiment in Rural Cooperation 
Prepared by 
Ann Cahoy, Research Assistant, 
September 2000 
CAP Report O 15 
CURA RESOURCE COLLECTION 
Center for Urban and Regtonal Affairs 
University of Minnesota 
330 Humphrey Center 
EXPERIMENT IN RURAL COOPERATION 
Common Sense Research and Problem Solving 
What is the Experiment in Rural Cooperation? 
Beginning in 1997, the Minnesota Legislature appropriated funds to the University of 
Minnesota to promote sustainable development in agriculture and natural resources by 
establishing regional development partnerships in rural Minnesota. In the year 2000, five 
regional sustainable agricultural and natural resource partnerships are in place, linking rural 
community priorities and University of Minnesota of resources. Annually each partnership 
receives a $200,000 appropriation through the State Legislature. 
The Experiment in Rural Cooperation is the southeast Minnesota partnership. It 
encompasses the Mississippi River Blufflands and the Rochester Plateau - all or nearly all 
of Olmsted, Fillmore, Houston, Goodhue, Winona and Houston Counties and small portions 
of Mower, Fillmore, Dakota and Washington Counties. 
The aim of the partnerships is to improve the responsiveness, breadth and effectiveness of 
relations between communities and their Land Grant University. 
Citizens, working in concert with University representatives, target the partnership priorities. 
The development of community-based initiatives or projects supported through the 
Experiment in Rural Cooperation is the responsibility of both community and University 
interests. A partnership that creates a learning experience for the University while 
providing practical resources for the community-based initiatives is the ideal. 
How to contact the Experiment in Rural Cooperation 
Speak with any of the board members or project leaders, listed below, or contact its 
director: 
Dick Broeker 
Experiment in Rural Cooperation 
RR 3, Box 1861 
Lake City, Minnesota 55041 
How has the Experiment evolved? 
phone: 651 345 4336 
fax: 651 345 7551 
email: dbroeker@rconnect.com 
Rural areas of southeast Minnesota are experiencing dramatic changes resulting from 
large-scale shifts in America's economy and social character. New technologies, global 
trade, changing demographics, and land use pressures present very difficult challenges to 
sustaining rural life and enhancing rural vitality. Addressing these challenges proactively 
necessitates that the region's citizens work together in focused ways on new solutions. 
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The Experiment in Rural Cooperation is designed to facilitate this process by offering 
financial support and University connections to get behind worthy endeavors in agriculture, 
natural resources, tourism, and forestry. Specifically, the Experiment: 
• ... encourages the joint - community and University - definition of opportunities and 
problems and solutions. 
• ... provides opportunities for learning, research, and outreach to rural communities and 
citizens and University of Minnesota faculty and students. 
• ... funds project partnerships that further sustainable development and that can make 
good use of University resources. 
The key factor in making this process successful has been active citizen leadership. The 
partnerships' vision is grounded in the conviction that, through citizen leaders, the 
University of Minnesota can play an increasingly effective role in acting on community, 
economic and environmental opportunities. 
What has happened so far? 
In its first full year of operation, the Experiment's board of directors completed a region-
wide asset mapping survey, identified 17 project partnerships based on the criteria 
established by citizen leaders and University representatives, and allocated approximately 
$350,000 to underwrite project activities. 
As the Experiment's work unfolds over time, the number of projects will change and the 
process will respond to those emerging opportunities identified by board members and/or 
forwarded for consideration by local interests. 
The board of directors has dispensed with the conventional RFP (request for proposal) 
procedure for soliciting partnership projects. The decision was made to keep the process 
open, simple and responsive by using a straightforward "request for idea" form that can be 
submitted at any time throughout the year to one of the Experiment's four standing 
committees: 
• Agriculture 
• Natural Resources 
• Community Development 
• Tourism 
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Who is involved? 
The Experiment is governed by the ethic of sustainability. The board of directors 
represents a broad cross-section of regional interests. Citizens or University faculty 
interested in serving on the board should call the Experiment's office for more information. 
The present board is: 
Mel Baughman - University of Minnesota/College of Natural Resources 
Mel is an Extension Specialist and Professor at the College of Natural Resources where he 
also serves as Associate Dean. His work focuses on educational and promotional 
materials for non-industrial private forestland owners. 
Donna Christison - Plainview, Minnesota 
Donna and her husband are hog farmers outside of Plainview. She has served in 
numerous community volunteer leadership positions as well as having co-chaired the 
Experiment's Animal Processing Task Force. 
Carolyn Dingfelder - Rollingstone, Minnesota 
Carolyn and her husband live on a farm where she operates a small business specializing 
in field ground perennials. She is involved with many youth and community-oriented 
activities such as the 4H and Master Gardener programs. 
Mary Doerr - Kenyon, Minnesota 
Mary owns and operates Dancing Winds Farm where she raises goats and operates a bed 
and breakfast as well as a grade A goat dairy and cheese plant. She is the president of the 
Cannon River Sustainable Farming Association. 
Naomi Fruechte - Caledonia, Minnesota 
Naomi is an Extension Educator for the University of Minnesota Extension Service in 
Houston County where she specializes in nutrition, food and health. She and her husband 
have a cow/calf beef farm outside of Caledonia. 
Larry Gates - Kellogg, Minnesota 
Larry works for the Department of Natural Resources in Rochester where he specializes in 
watershed management. He and his wife live on 160 acres in East Indian Creek where 
they do sheep, turkey and truck farming. 
Judy Gilow - Winona, Minnesota 
Judy is a Winona County Commissioner and active in many community initiatives such as 
the Feed Lot Task Force. She owns and operates a small business from the farm on which 
she and her husband live in rural Winona County. 
Jeff Gorfine - Rochester, Minnesota 
Jeff is a learner advocate for adult literacy programs in the Rochester Public 
Schools System. He has worked in pastoral mental health and corrections and continues 
to be actively engaged in neighborhood community organizing. 
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Dean Harrington - Plainview, Minnesota 
Dean is the President/CEO of First National Bank in Plainview where he resides with his 
wife and children. He is a Rural America Arts Partnership board director, a civic activist, 
and an avid reader of fiction, literary criticism, poetry, and history. 
Gary Holthaus - Red Wing, Minnesota 
Gary is a writer, often on the topics of sustainability and culture, and a consultant to non-
profit community organizations such as schools and institutes. He is the interim director at 
the Institute for Humanities in Salado, Texas. 
David Klinski - Caledonia 
David has a small dairy farmer near Hokah where he lives with his family. He served on 
the local school board for eleven and a half years and in the army for two years. He' s 
been recognized for his keen interest in the region's history. 
Sue Lantz - Byron, Minnesota 
Sue is an owner/operator of Garten Marketplatz, a 10-acre perennial plant farm and retail 
store southwest of Rochester that has developed a loyal region-wide customer base. She 
lives on a farm with her husband and three children. 
Ralph Lentz - Lake City, Minnesota 
Ralph is a retired agriculture teacher who raises grass fed beef cattle outside of Lake City. 
He is a recognized leader in the sustainable agriculture movement and has held numerous 
regional and statewide leadership positions. 
Roger Moon - University of Minnesota/College of Agricultural, Food and 
Environmental Science 
Roger is a Professor of Livestock Entomology at the University of Minnesota. His work, in 
the United States and abroad, includes pop1:1lation ecology and management of arthropods 
that bother livestock and people. 
Toni Smith - Wabasha, Minnesota 
Toni is an Extension Educator for the University of Minnesota Extension Service in 
Wabasha County. She specializes in community development and is recognized statewide 
for her work on rural tourism and strategic planning. 
Ed Taylor- Lanesboro, Minnesota 
Ed is a Fillmore County dairy farmer and works in partnership with his daughter and son-in-
law. He has served as a Peace Corps volunteer, on the farm credit board of directors at 
AgStar, and on the Good Earth Village board. 
John Torgrimson - Preston, Minnesota 
John is the editor and publisher of the FILLMORE COUNTY JOURNAL. He resides with 
his wife and two children in rural Lanesboro. His has extensive international experience 
working overseas for a number of years. 
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Tim Wagar - Rochester, Minnesota 
Tim is an Extension Educator for the University of MinnesQta Southeast District Extension 
office where he specializes in the areas of crops and soils and, among other things, 
manages the River Friendly Farmer Program. 
How Does the Process Work? 
It's pretty simple. Anyone can apply ... a nonprofit corporation, a unit of government, a 
private business, a farmer, an unincorporated entrepreneur, a civic group, or a volunteer 
leader. The door is open year-round for new project partnership ideas. 
1. Make sure the project partnership proposal meets the Experiment in Rural 
Cooperation's criteria: 
• Will the proposal take into account the principles of sustainability - including 
fostering regional diversity - as well as seeking balance among environmental, 
economic, and social quality of life priorities? 
• Does it focus on southeast Minnesota? 
• Does it focus on agriculture, natural resources (forests, soil, water, wildlife, 
wetlands, etc.), farming, forestry and/or tourism? 
• Does it involve research, outreach, and/or education? 
• Will it improve the local economy? 
• Does it build partnerships among local citizens, businesses, communities, 
organizations, or agencies and University of Minnesota faculty? 
• Are the appropriate people and organizations involved for this project to 
succeed? 
• Does it have a strong public purpose so the results of the project or program will 
be useful to others in southeast Minnesota? 
• Is the proposed project an economical use of public funds? 
It helps to review those project partnerships already funded by the Experiment in 
Rural Cooperation. But, do not be limited by what is already underway. The board 
of directors is very much interested in new ideas. Projects to date have been funded 
from $2,500 to $65,000. Generally speaking, financial allocations from the 
Experiment are not intended to support ongoing budget needs. 
2. If the proposed project partnership seems to fit the criteria, contact the Experiment's 
director or a board member to obtain a one-page "request for idea" form. 
3. Fill out the form and send, fax, or email it to the Experiment's staff person. 
4. Once received, the form will be copied and sent to the appropriate board committee (or 
more than one committee if this makes sense) for discussion. If there is board 
committee interest - based on the "request for ideas" form - in pursuing the project 
partnership, the project leader will be invited to discuss the idea at greater length. 
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5. If the committee agrees that a partnership with the proposed project is worthwhile, it will 
work with the project leader to develop University linkages, settle on a budget and a 
schedule, and prepare a presentation to the Experiment in Rural Cooperation's board of 
directors. 
6. If approved for funding by the board, a University of Minnesota partnership agreement 
will be drafted based on the project leader's interests, the board committee's interests, 
and University interests. 
7. During the course of the project (most are funded for about a year), a board member or 
two - if the not the board committee - will stay involved at one level or another. 
8. At the end of the funding period, the project leader submits a brief report on the 
outcome. 
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PROJECT PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVES 
Experiment in Rural Cooperation 
FEATHERSTONE FRUITS AND VEGETABLES 
Rushford, Minnesota 
Ten years ago organic food was considered a 
specialty item. Today, organic foods have become 
part of the American mainstream culture. Markets 
have experienced a 15-20% yearly growth rate for 
the past 5 years. According to USDA officials, the 
number of organic farmers is increasing 12% a year. 
Featherstone Fruits and Vegetables is an organic 
farm located near Rushford , Minnesota in the rolling 
hills and farm fields of southeast Minnesota. The 
Featherstone farm is owned by Jack Hedin and 
Rhys Williams who have twenty-plus years of 
farming experience. They have been - in the long 
term - committed to organic farming and their 
current venture has been supplying produce to the 
Rochester, Winona, and La Crosse areas for years . 
A variety of produce is grown at Featherstone 
including lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and 
strawberries. Through experience, Hedin and 
Williams have learned successful ways of growing 
vigorous, productive crops that taste good and 
provide a natural , healthy food option for consumers. 
One growing method under development at Featherstone is the use of large, portable greenhouses 
one of which is seen here with Williams in the foreground . The Experiment in Rural Cooperation is 
financially supporting the design and development of this greenhouse approach to enhance the 
sustainability of produce agriculture. 
The objective of a portable greenhouse is to extend the growing season and expand the variety of 
crops that can be produced. Also, the growing of some plants that traditionally were not grown - or 
difficult to grow - in southeast Minnesota has been made possible because of greenhouse 
structures. 
The portable greenhouse design and building technology are easy to learn. The construction 
materials are locally available and inexpensive. Moving the greenhouse structures from place to 
place is easily accomplished, making this greenhouse model ideal for smaller farms. 
The University of Minnesota has supported this initiative through an interdisciplinary faculty group 
from the College of Agricultural, Environmental and Food Science. Faculty have provided technical 
expertise to support greenhouse development in southeast Minnesota and offered to be of 
assistance on organic production challenges. 
Featherstone Fruits and Vegetables has been involved in the Southeast Minnesota Working Foods 
Group sponsored by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation. The Foods Working Group is 
collaborating with over two dozen University faculty members, from an array of departments and 
colleges, to develop an ongoing University/food projects partnership that would hard-link University 
resources with regional food opportunities. 
For more information: Rhys Williams/Featherstone Fruits and Vegetables 507 453 9621 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/ 651 345 4663 
SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA FOODS WORKING GROUP 
Southeast Minnesota Region 
Strengthening the economy in 
southeast Minnesota requires the focus 
and courage of community leaders' 
convictions in recognizing the region's 
unique attributes, one of them being 
food production. Farmers , businesses, 
citizens, investors and University of 
Minnesota resources, concentrating on 
common interests, can develop a 
strong economy that creates jobs and 
builds wealth locally. 
The Southeast Minnesota Foods 
Working Group involves nearly a dozen 
food-related projects, businesses and 
farms working together on a regional 
food system. Faculty members from 
the University of Minnesota have been exploring a long-term collaboration linking an array of 
University departments and colleges with southeast Minnesota food enterprises. 
The Working Foods Group/University discussions are aimed at supporting a regional homegrown 
food system based on a southeast Minnesota food identify and food and farming ventures. 
Central to the model are: building an environmentally-sound, sustainable regional-economy by 
revitalizing rural communities as pillars of a democratic society; growing and marketing of a wide-
range of high quality foods ; creating new food products; proposing new public policies; developing 
new production technologies; experimenting with new crops and processing techniques; and, 
inspiring local and visiting consumers while respecting the uniqueness of the beautiful - and 
ecologically fragile - Mississippi River Blufflands landscape with its diverse farms and orchards and 
agricultural practices, and small towns and villages. 
Research, student internships and field projects,. and case studies are evolving from this initiative. 
An example is the doctoral thesis research by a Department of Applied Economics student studying 
regional food supply chain issues. The goal is to quantify the movement of food - from production 
to point of sale - as a way of establishing a methodology by which small, regional producers 
utilizing sustainable agriculiural practices can assess costs and constraints associated with specific 
supply chain opportunities. 
In concert with a number of University representatives, conversations have taken place on the 
feasibility of a rural business development lab to cluster resources around targeted entrepreneurial 
food ventures. The lab could create a full-time point of access to encourage partnerships between 
the University and rural food businesses. 
The Southeast Minnesota Foods Working Group has sponsored region-wide research to survey 
400 residents. The purpose is to identify what values drive food purchase decisions and, then, to 
encourage food enterprises to respond to emerging consumer interests, such as in the case of 
Rebekah's Coffee House - pictured above - that specializes in a menu featuring tasty home-
cooked meals using local food ingredients for the increasing number of consumers who have grown 
weary of no-name, fast food . 
For more information: Jeff Gorfine/Foods Working Group 507 529 4523 
A proje_ct supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
WIND ENERGY - RURAL COMMUNITY INDEPENDENCE 
Lake City, Minnesota 
Renewable energy resources are available locally as 
sustainable assets that many communities have yet to 
put to work. Not only are they better for the 
environment and the world's natural resource base, 
renewable energy sources make sense economically. 
Wind, solar, and biomass power are constantly 
replenishing themselves and do not diminish by use. 
Local sustainable resources keep energy dollars in the 
immediate economy, rather than the dollars flowing out 
to purchase energy made by fossil fuels from domestic 
or foreign sources. 
With increasing governmental deregulation of electric 
utilities, rural communities are likely to suffer higher 
rates. Reconstruction of the industry will put rural 
Minnesota at a disadvantage as outstate communities 
compete for power with large metropolitan areas and 
high-volume industrial users. 
If rural communities establish municipal utilities that are 
engineered to operate, at least partially, on renewable 
energy resources, then individual households and local 
industries will have less costly electric bills. Rural 
communities typically do not benefit from the upper end 
of wage and incomes scales. They can best sustain themselves by holding down the cost of living 
scale in which energy expenses play no small role. 
Sig Anderson , an engineer from Lake City and a member of CURE - Communities United for 
Responsible Energy, is directing a feasibility study for making use of wind energy in smaller 
communities to supplement conventional sources of energy generation. Anderson is working with 
citizens , local government, the University of Minnesota, and special interest groups to determine the 
best way to establish wind energy systems. 
Wind energy proof of concept research needs to be completed in finding optimum locations, 
defining appropriate technologies, and designing workable management/staff models. Consumer 
education is also an important step given the somewhat mindless dependence characterizing the 
more typical relationship that the average consumer has with his or her utility . 
If a rural community independence electric-energy model can be implemented, the local economy 
will be the beneficiary. Energy dollars will be kept in the community, jobs will be created, and a 
more environmentally-friendly way of obtaining electric power will conserve limited and increasingly 
expensive fossil fuels . 
Anderson is working with the University of Minnesota's Institute of Technology on a feasibility study 
design and is seen above leading a site visit with a University faculty representative to the Buffalo 
Ridge wind energy development in southwest Minnesota. The Institute has asked the community 
group supporting the project (CURE) to assist in organizing a statewide University-sponsored wind 
energy conference involving leaders form rural Minnesota, University faculty, and major utilities. 
For more information: Sig Anderson/Communities United for Responsible Energy 651 345 4515 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
APPLE CRISP COOPERATIVE 
Southeast Minnesota Region 
Southeast Minnesota is a 
countryside dotted with picturesque 
apple orchards, a development led 
nearly a century ago by the 
University of Minnesota. Partly due 
to the Mississippi River and partly 
due to landscape conditions created 
in the last glacial age, climate and 
soil conditions are unique to the area 
and ideal for robust apple crops. 
Apple Crisp Cooperative was formed 
two years ago by seven independent 
apple growers, one of whom is Harry 
Hoch, pictured at left in his orchard 
near La Crescent. As individual 
businesses, Minnesota apple 
orchards are generally small, 
producing modest volumes of product. Together the orchards are capable of providing sufficient 
critical mass to engage in a marketplace increasingly dominated by global, large-scale forces. 
The Cooperative was established to develop markets for apples that are less than number one 
quality. Early research results identified a market for sliced Haralson apples - a prized Minnesota 
apple used in quality baking - in the food service industry associated with institutional customers 
such as hospitals , schools, and large bakeries. 
Thus far, the Cooperative has developed a flash-frozen sliced apple product and has the capacity to 
process approximately 20,000 pounds annually on a test basis. Half of the sliced apple production 
for this past year has been sold to a large retail operation. Apple puree is another Cooperative 
Product. 10,000 pounds of apple puree are currently being used by a processor for Minnesota 
apple ice cream. The Apple Crisp Cooperative is considering the production of a Minnesota 
applesauce. Similar to the frozen apple product, growers will first research and identify a market for 
the product. If the research results are positive, the Cooperative will explore the feasibility of 
building a processing plant for the applesauce. 
The value-added strategy undertaken by the Cooperative provides an excellent opportunity for 
Minnesota apple producers to compete in a tough marketplace dominated by commodity pricing. 
The challenge is to create the opportunity to pursue value-added ventures given the heavy 
demands placed on orchard owners in managing their production operations. Attracting capital to 
sustain the value-added business will not happen unless market research suggests a positive 
outcome. 
A University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management graduate marketing class has completed 
a promotions/product placement study under the guidance of a professor of marketing and logistics 
management. The students, organized into field teams, responded to a series of market and 
promotions issues drafted by the Cooperative. Apple Crisp Cooperative is also involved in the 
Southeast Minnesota Working Foods Group in building a long-term collaboration with University 
interests. 
For more information: Harry Hoch/Apple Crisp Cooperative 507 643 6329 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
SUSTAINABLE FINANCING FOR RURAL MINNESOTA 
Southeast Minnesota Region 
The national economy has been thriving in 
recent years. Unfortunately, rural 
communities have often been left behind 
as corporate consolidations continue at an 
accelerating rate and as business activity 
has drifted to larger centers of commerce. 
To sustain Minnesota's rural communities 
economically, the rural citizenry should be 
able to invest in local businesses and in 
regional natural resources and agriculture-
related enterprises. Currently, it is difficult 
- if not impossible - for the rural citizen to 
put her or his money where her or his 
heart is when it comes to investing in the 
private sector. 
The Sustainable Financing Project for Rural Minnesota is a task force project chaired by Dean 
Harrington (above) , president of the First National Bank of Plainview and Experiment in Rural 
Cooperation board director, to address the possibility of establishing new mechanisms that allow 
investors from rural Minnesota to target their investments locally. The goal is to generate more 
equity capital - raised locally - that would be available for locally based investments. Many rural 
businesses suffer from an over-dependence on credit capital. In the absence of patient equity 
capital , it is challenging for these enterprises to expand or stay in business. 
The Task Force has accomplished myriad in-depth feasibility interviews. Seasoned investors, 
bankers and economic development specialists were asked questions on the present status of rural 
investments and what they view as opportunities for local investment in local businesses. 
The Task Force undertook research on equity-investment practices elsewhere in North America 
having relevance to rural regions. The intent is to learn what does not work as well as what works. 
For example, the availability of out-of-region venture capital is of little importance in many rural 
areas where high-tech companies are few and far between and, more importantly, where the goal is 
to generate wealth within the community and to support local, patient long-term ownership in the 
cause of sustaining a vital homegrown economy. 
Several policy or model possibilities have emerged that Minnesota could adopt to increase rural 
investments. Models are being developed on a multi-stage basis that include a variety of options 
for rural communities. The next phase is to begin addressing model development options and 
model implementation strategies. 
The project was launched by a steering group comprised of citizen leaders, U. of M. Extension 
educators, and faculty members (Law School, Humphrey Institute, Carlson School of Management, 
College of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, etc.) . Initially staffed through the 
University's Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, the background research was 
completed by a Conservation Biology graduate student recruited through the University's 
Community Assistantship Program. 
For more information: Dean Harrington/First National Bank of Plainview 507 534 3131 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
ROOT RIVER MARKET 
Houston, Minnesota 
Located on the beautiful Root River in southeast 
Minnesota is a small town called Houston. 
Houston has been surrounded by - and 
economically benefited from the fertile 
agricultural land and the rich natural resources of 
southeast Minnesota. 
Despite the region 's array of food producers, 
availability of local products has been limited; only 
large grocery stores carrying national brands have 
serviced the citizenry. Over the years, 
notwithstanding a growing area population, all five 
of Houston's main street grocery stores have 
closed . These local marketplaces served as 
communal gathering spots and sustained a sense 
of community. Their absence created a social 
hole. 
Through the Houston Arts Resource Council, 
citizens began gathering in 1998 for roundtable 
discussions to brainstorm possibilities for a 
cooperative market. The Root River Market -
scheduled to open in the fall of 2000 - is the result. 
The Root River Market is located in Houston's historic commercial district in an old grocery store 
building . A key component of the market is a much-needed pharmacy. The store's pharmacy is of 
great importance to the community. Prior to the Market pharmacy, the closest place to fill 
prescription orders was many miles away in another town. 
A fu ll time manager is in charge of the market's daily operations while an executive board of eight 
members directs strategic planning and major events for the co-op. The store is managed as a 
traditional grocery store. A priority will be fresh produce and products from area farmers and 
suppliers. Conventional products will be ordered at bulk rate to meet customer needs. 
The project leader - Peter Denzer, in the above photo outside of the new market - has been active 
in the Southeast Minnesota Foods Working Group, sponsored through the University of Minnesota's 
Experiment in Rural Cooperation. He has participated in faculty discussions on a long-term 
collaboration between the University and regional food ventures and is taking a lead role in 
organizing a University workshop to be held in southeast Minnesota later this year. 
As a retail food operation, the Root River Market has the promise of connecting area producers with 
area consumers. The Market emphasizes collaboration in providing an efficient way to sell and 
obtain food products, some locally produced. After months of efforts by a large group of volunteers, 
the new market will soon help to sustain the local economy in a way that better maintains the small 
town way of life. In fact, the community literally owns the Market with 350 citizens having 
purchased cooperative shares in the venture. 
For more information : Peter Denzer/Houston Arts Resource Council/507 896 2568 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
WASTE WOOD FUELS 
Southeast Minnesota Region 
Biomass power is a renewable 
resource in plentiful supply in 
southeast Minnesota. Low quality 
waste wood works well as a heating 
fuel for outdoor chunk wood furnaces. 
Wood slabs from sawmills, old 
pallets, tree waste from logging 
operations, and city tree refuse are 
excellent sources of biomass power 
to produce heat and keep costs low. 
Now, waste wood is viewed as a 
problem entailing disposal costs. 
Making this wood a sustainable 
natural resources asset would serve 
multiple purposes. 
Phil Vieth, a forest products 
development specialist from the 
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, has led the effort to undertake a waste wood use 
feasibility study. "As a society," he says, "we are underestimating the value that wood fuel provides 
to our economy. Not only does wood fuel provide a renewable resource for heating purposes, but it 
also can save individual households a significant amount of money on fuel bills." 
An effective technology to burn wood as fuel is an outdoor hot-water furnace. Installation costs are 
relatively high, but the payback is short-term given the availability and low cost of wood fuel. 
Presently in southeast Minnesota, 80,000-100,000 cords of wood are used annually for wood fuel. 
This works out as a $4-5 million savings compared to the equivalent cost for gas heating. More 
households using wood fuels would generate considerable aggregate savings and hold down the 
cost of living in rural areas during a period when natural and propane gas prices are skyrocketing. 
Local businesses, such as furnace distributors and wood harvesters, would benefit from an 
increased use in fuel woods and this would feed into a local economic multiplier effect. The highest 
ongoing cost-factor with the use of wood fuel for home heating is the transportation expense to 
move the wood to individual households. This activity would be performed by local entrepreneurs 
and further contribute to the region's economic base. "The benefits of using wood fuels with a 
proven technology are obvious." Vieth observes. "What we need to do next is find out the 
incentives people need before switching over to wood." 
Through the University of Minnesota, research is focusing on the economic variables in burning 
wood fuel in hot water boiling systems. In consultation with the initiative's advisory committee, a 
faculty member from the Department of Forest Resources in the College of Natural Resources and 
two graduate students are undertaking the study. 
Using the research results, homeowners, contractors and heating/plumbing businesses can be 
educated about the economics of wood heating and the advantages of a biomass system over 
conventional fossil fuels technology. In the process, waste wood disposal issues can be addressed 
in environmentally sensitive ways. 
For more information: Phil Vieth/DNR Division of Forestry 651 437 3253 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
APPLE BLOSSOM DRIVE STUDY 
Winona - La Crescent, Minnesota 
Along the Mississippi River -
between Winona and La Crescent -
a narrow winding road known as 
Apple Blossom Drive captures some 
the most spectacular scenery in the 
United States. As seen on the left, 
Apple Blossom Drive is a special 
place for scenic overlooks and to 
experience magnificent vistas of the 
Mississippi River as it meanders 
through miles and miles of rolling 
river bluffs. 
Along the Drive, travelers and 
tourists can spot the many apple 
orchards that gave Apple Blossom 
Drive its name. But, the number of 
these orchards has been falling over 
the years as development interests have purchased the bluff top property. Farm land and apple 
orchards are being replaced by housing and commercial buildings seeking to take advantage of the 
prime development acreage. Some citizens are fighting the destruction of this beautiful area and 
the loss of historically productive agricultural land that, at the same time, drives up adjacent land 
values that will make farming in the area nearly impossible from an economic perspective. 
Others believe that what is happening is inevitable and, in many ways, is valuable in helping to build 
the region's tax and economic base. The development of bluff line property is a controversial issue 
that now involves frequently raised voices of many different people and organizations with often 
conflicting opinions about the best way of sustaining this area's social, economic and agricultural 
base. 
At the request of local interests in the Winona and La Crescent communities, Patrick Nunnally, a 
Program director at the University of Minnesota Center for Urban and Regional Affairs, became 
involved with researching bluff top development along Apple Blossom Drive. Nunnally and his 
University team promote conservation development approaches that seek to balance environmental 
and development agendas. Conservation development is a strategy that respects natural 
landscapes by setting priorities before the development commences. For example, apple orchards, 
scenic overlooks, and river bluff lands would be protected within the context of the growth that 
characteristically is attracted into such beautiful areas. 
Nunnally's team is analyzing changes in land prices, housing prices, and farming investments. By 
knowing the shifts in land values, those involved will get , a better handle on the economics 
associated with changes along Apple Blossom Drive. In late 2000, a University of Minnesota 
graduate student's research will focus on agricultural land values over time and set the stage for 
land use decisions that must be addressed by local governmental units. In the absence of informed 
decisions, the raging debate will continue without yielding sustaining resolutions. 
For more information: Patrick Nunnally/University of Minnesota 612 625 034 7 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
OMEGA COOPERATIVE 
Pine Island, Minnesota 
The structure of the food industry is 
rapidly changing. Producers and 
retailers are consolidating into large 
corporations located in central 
commercial hubs far from the fields of 
rural America. 
In southeast Minnesota, small 
producers are experiencing the 
negative effects of these changes. 
They have little control over what is 
happening on the national level and, by 
in large, only react to changes. 
Solutions typically have been short-
term and focused on small pieces of 
the system rather than the big picture. 
In Pine Island, a group of producers is working at the front end of planning a better community-
based food strategy for their area . Local leadership is developing a regional food system that is 
sustainable and community driven. 
The OMEGA Cooperative was established two years ago to bring local solutions to changes in the 
food industry. Focusing attention on Rochester and the surrounding area, its aim is to develop a 
local food system that supports the specific values, wants, and needs of food producers and 
consumers in the region. 
To be successful , a regional food system must fulfill as many community needs as possible. 
Knowing what local consumers want from a food system is central to the Cooperative's success. It 
is also the most challenging information to obtain. 
"Defining the average southeast Minnesota meal - fresh , fast, baked, frozen, or micro waved - is 
hard to do." states Abraham Algadi, a member of the OMEGA Cooperative. "Researching current 
market needs and wants is the first step to determining if a local food approach is feasible." 
Surveys, interviews, and focus groups are the tools OMEGA is using to research the best way to 
implement its program. 
One finding from research to date is an accelerating consumer trend reflected in an emphasis on 
healthy, good tasting foods . This has led OMEGA to believe that there is a place for a local food 
enterprise constructed on natural, wholesome, and homegrown principles. Providing such foods to 
the region is the goal of value-based approach that OMEGA is working to establish. 
The Cooperative has a student intern from the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of 
Management (through the Community Assistantship Program). Omega is in the process of 
collecting its research data through a local marketing research firm. Omega's leaders have been 
active in the Southeast Minnesota Foods Working Group exploring a way to design a long-term 
collaborative effort to join University and local food interests. 
For more information: Rod Sommerfield/Omega Cooperative 507 365 8103 
A projec_t supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/ 651 345 4663 
BADGERSETT RESEARCH FARMS 
Canton, Minnesota 
To most people, the term "woody 
agriculture" is an unfamiliar concept. 
Woody agriculture refers to the 
growing of domesticated woody 
perennial crops such as in the 
accompanying image of a hazelnut 
plant on Badgersett Research Farm. 
The nuts can be harvested annually 
as a staple commercial food product. 
Domesticated plants and trees 
characteristic of woody agriculture 
differ from wild plants through years 
of selective breeding. The breeding 
work has resulted in dependable 
plants with consistent, high volume 
production. 
Phil Rutter, owner and chief researcher at Badgersett Research Farm, began the first plantings on 
his woody agriculture farm over 20 years ago. Badgersett's 160-acres are utilized in the growing of 
hazelnuts and chestnuts for purposes of commercial food production, biomass, and direct sale to 
market. Through research and experimentation, Rutter has developed successful crops of hybrid 
hazelnuts and chestnuts. 
Unlike conventional row crops, the hazelnut and chestnut plants are planted only once. They offer 
many attributes to support sustainable agriculture. Seeds are harvested annually and wood is 
harvested every 5-10 years as biomass fuel. Within one year of harvesting the wood, the plants will 
regenerate from the roots, once again producing seeds. Because the soil is tilled only once, there 
is little erosion and less work energy involved - a positive when considering the southeast 
Minnesota hilly and rolling terrain that often creates serious erosion problems with row cropping. 
The woody plants are also drought resistant as well as flood tolerant. They capture three times 
more solar energy than annual plants and this directly effects the amount of seed and wood 
produced. 
From a business perspective, a market for raw nuts is already established. Most nut production of 
hazels and chestnuts occurs outside of the United States, with the nation reliant on imported nuts. 
The oil from hazels - its oil can be used much like soybean oil - is a secondary market opportunity. 
Chestnuts are carbohydrate-based similar to flour or maize and provide an excellent food source. 
In its own fashion, hazelnuts are a luxury food. The supply from wild trees has never come close to 
satisfying market demand. 
The Badgersett initiative has utilized a University of Minnesota graduate research assistant from the 
Department of Applied Economics and is launching its business plan development through a past 
associate of the University's Center for Integrated Natural Resources and Agricultural Management 
and the coordinator of the University's Community Assistantship Program. The next stage for this 
enterprise is to design a business plan driven by the commercialization opportunity. 
For more information: Phil Rutter/Badgersett Research Farm 507 743 8570 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
COMMUNITY DESIGN CENTER: Hiawatha's Pantry 
Lanesboro, Minnesota/Region-Wide 
Money flowing in and out of southeast 
Minnesota establishes economic 
patterns that either help or hurt the 
region 's economic well-being. Rural 
areas tend to import considerably more 
products/services than they export. As 
a result, more money flows out than 
flows in . 
Food purchasing patterns in southeast 
Minnesota suggest that outside 
business interests benefit at the 
expense of the local economy. This 
upside-down import/export equation is 
a detriment to establishing a regional 
food system in the fertile Hiawatha 
Valley countryside - seen to the left -
that historically has been know for its considerable food-producing qualities. Southeast Minnesota 
would benefit from a system that is more sustainable by re-diverting food expenditures into local 
communities and then reaping benefits from the resulting economic multiplier factor. 
The Community Design Center of Minnesota, under the leadership of Nancy Bratrud and Ruth 
Murphy, is undertaking a study through its Hiawatha's Pantry project to determine how much money 
is spent on food in southeast Minnesota and where the food dollars are traveling within the region 
and outside of the region. The study will analyze available data on individuals, businesses, and 
institutions to measure the flow of purchase dollars. By identifying the products purchased in local 
markets and the flow of food purchasing dollars, growers and farmers will be better able to judge 
what products are in demand and identify opportunities to sustain smaller producers. 
"If the total value of all food purchases in the region is known , producers can begin to determine 
the feasibility of entering into specific areas of food production, processing, and marketing. " notes 
Bratrud. One challenge in building a regional food system is to develop a methodology for food 
producers that provides consumers with sought-after food products that represent a target for 
retaining food purchasing dollars in the region . 
Bratrud and Murphy are convinced an alternate model can counter the present centralized food 
system that draws wealth and resources out of the region and undercuts production opportunities 
for area farmers, producers and processors. If the producers in the region collaborate to organize 
food production and link directly into consumer interests, the regional economy will be diversified 
and opportunities for healthy growth will increase. 
The project leaders have been active participants in the Southeast Minnesota Foods Working 
Group. Bratrud has been instrumental in shaping a University of Minnesota research project 
examining supply chain food movement from producers within the region to point-of-sale options 
inside and outside of southeast Minnesota. A student research associate has been placed with the 
Hiawatha's Pantry project through the University's Institute for Social , Economic & Ecological 
Sustainability. 
For more information : Nancy Bratrud/Community Design Center of Minnesota 507 467 3446 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
COUNTRY HERITAGE ADVENTURES 
Southeast Minnesota Region 
Tourism combined with a 
farm/agricultural experience - or agri-
tourism as it has become known - has 
been growing in popularity throughout 
the United States and, more 
specifically, in Minnesota with its rich 
and highly-textured rural heritage. 
Farm tours, bed and breakfasts, 
farmers markets, and other tourism 
enterprises can help to diversify local 
farm operations and strengthen the 
region's homegrown economy in an 
ever-changing world dominated by non-
local influences. 
With more accessible tourism choices 
in the countryside, visitors are 
increasingly drawn to rural communities. There, they spend time and money on local goods and 
services and , in the process, develop a better understanding of rural issues and an appreciation of 
sustainable practices that can enhance resources in the countryside. 
Through agri-tourism, farmers can generate additional on-farm income and take advantage of 
urban-rural connections for purposes of direct marketing food or farm products. Bringing the 
marketplace onto the farm can be an important alternative to small producers who do not have the 
financial wherewithal for expensive direct marketing strategies. 
Country Heritage Adventures is a non-profit, agri-tourism organization that manages a fifteen farm 
tour package in Dodge, Goodhue, Olmsted and Wabasha counties. Included in the tour are farms 
featuring dairy herds, emu, buffalo, goats, llamas, perennials, antiques, and more. By marketing 
and advertising together, the individual farms save money, reach a wider audience, and offer a 
clustered array of tourism options for interested customers. 
Mary Doerr, a Country Heritage Adventures member and an Experiment in Rural Cooperation 
board director, is pictured above feeding the goats at her Dancing Winds Farm. She invites 
tourists, markets a top quality goat cheese produced in her grade A goat dairy and cheese plant, 
and offers bed and breakfast accommodations for overnight guests. This is one example of how a 
specialty food farm operation can diversify its business base in creative and sustainable ways to 
stay small and remain profitable. 
Outside organizations are important to the Country Heritage Adventures strategy. Area businesses 
can purchase participating memberships and in return receive membership recognition. Farm 
families who wish to be part of the tour structure buy yearly memberships. 
Two University of Minnesota graduate students, a Carlson School of Management faculty member 
and the University Extension Service's Tourism Center have worked on a marketing/promotion 
strategy under the leadership of a U. of M. Extension Service educator (and Experiment in Rural 
Cooperation board member) from the region. The goal over the next year is to focus the marketing 
efforts to test how successful agri-tourism can be in southeast Minnesota. 
For more information: Jackie Welti/Country Heritage Adventures 507 534 2866 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
LAND STEWARDSHIP PROJECT: Food Choices 
Southeast Minnesota Region 
-
Many consumers are demanding sustainably-grown 
products produced in ways that are economically viable, 
ecologically sound, and socially responsible. In recent 
years, the fastest growing market segment in the 
grocery business has been organic and natural foods 
and foods produced in a healthful , friendly fashion. 
Traditional farmers and new specialty growers in 
southeast Minnesota are looking to tap into this rapidly 
developing market. 
The Land Stewardship Project office in Lewiston, 
Minnesota promotes sustainable farming in rural 
communities and emphasizes the marketing of fresh 
area foods such as those featured by Dennis Rabe, in 
the accompanying photograph, at his swine farm near 
Lake City. Dennis and wife, Sue, have a sustainable 
farming operation and market their high-quality pork 
products directly to the public in southeast Minnesota. 
The Land Stewardship Project has undertaken a special 
initiative called Food Choices. Food Choices is a long-
term effort that involves producers, processors, 
distributors, institutions, retailers, and consumers. By 
inter-linking the different interests in the food chain, 
Food Choices is helping to create a regional food system. The establishment of a regional food 
system will create an invaluable piece of infrastructure providing new economic opportunities for 
farmers, growers, and processors. 
One goal of Food Choices is to develop a verification system for foods grown through sustainable 
practices. Consumers currently have difficulty in knowing the conditions under which food is grown, 
raised, or produced. Food Choices is helping to set standards for sustainably raised meats that will 
encourage consumers to make food choices thaf fit with their priorities. Once the standards have 
been tested and refined , inspectors will offer seals of approval to farms that meet product-specific, 
environmental and social guidelines. 
A second activity of Food Choices is assisting a new cooperative of swine producers. The 
cooperative is characterized by valued-added and sustainable production and is working to 
implement a business plan. One priority of the plan is marketing. Innovative ways to promote, 
order, process, store, and deliver products from the cooperative are being discussed. Again, this 
effort is central to establishing a regional food network that localizes food chain links and supports a 
homegrown economy that brings new opportunities to farming in the region. 
The Land Stewardship Project has been central to the faculty discussions of the Southeast 
Minnesota Foods Working Group's proposed university collaboration. A variety of University faculty 
has been called upon for individual consultations on the Food Choices Project. Land Stewardship 
has had a history of involving University of Minnesota resources in field days, marketing training, 
farm policy and organizational development work. 
For more information: Richard Ness/Land Stewardship Project 507 523 3366 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
PARIDISE PRARRIE PRODUCTS 
Plainview, Minnesota 
A thriving economy begins first with 
entrepreneurs. They, as it is said, 
are the yeast of the economy that 
spur business growth and economic 
development. Rural communities in 
southeast Minnesota - to maintain 
and nurture their vitality and sustain 
their local economies - must support 
entrepreneurs who build local 
businesses. They are essential to 
the mix required of a vigorous 
homegrown economy. 
When businesses use locally 
available resources and create 
wealth that stays in the community, 
they generate jobs and sustainable options necessary for smaller communities and rural regions to 
survive in today's global economy. 
Paradise Prairie Products is a Plainview-based business start-up that plans to work with in-area 
producers and processors to develop upscale consumer products defined qualitatively by locally-
produced foods and ingredients. Owned and operated by Ken and Millie Flies, Paradise Prairie 
Products will produce food products that represent Plainview, the community they are produced in . 
Sweet corn - a well-known crop of area farmers - will be a prime food product for the Paradise 
Prairie line. Millie, with Ken, is pictured here whipping up a batch of corn chowder in the 
commercial kitchen of their restaurant, Tavern on the Green. 
This food start-up venture will be launched using University marketing research and development 
resources. Paradise Prairie has been an active participant in the Southeast Minnesota Foods 
Working Group and is playing a lead role in hosting the upcoming University of Minnesota 
symposium scheduled for Plainview later this summer. 
The venture began when Millie Flies began searching for ways to sell her famous corn chowder. 
The chowder is made with sweet corn grown in southeast Minnesota, spices from a nearby spice 
factory, and other wholesome food ingredients from the region. The marketing of this product 
centers on promoting the image of Plainview and its rich history in agriculture. The community-
based business approach underlies Paradise Prairie's development strategy. Plainview has been 
undergoing an arts and culture renaissance. The Flies's have been active in revitalizing the 
community's heritage as a way to sustain its future. 
The Flies's have test-marketed their corn product using the fully equipped and spacious Tavern on 
the Green kitchen. They welcome other chefs into the kitchen to experiment with new products that 
could one-day carry the Paradise Prairie label. Working with area chefs; using locally grown foods 
and spices; marketing the history and culture of Plainview; and distinguishing a unique product-line 
brand in a crowded marketplace are the type of activities that will build a rural homegrown 
economy. 
For more information: Ken and Millie Flies/Paradise Prairie Products 507 534 3746 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
DOWN LIGHTING 
Southeast Minnesota Region 
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Increasing concerns about 
outdoor lighting are surfacing at 
community forums and local 
government meetings across the 
nation. Questions are being 
raised about the cost, safety and 
environmental friendliness of 
conventional lights typically used 
in public places. Down lighting is 
an alternative lighting technology 
employing cut-off caps to shield 
the light's source and focus the 
light beam. 
Tine Thevenin, a rural Lake City 
resident, has been an advocate 
for down lighting and is the 
volunteer project director. Her 
work involves researching down 
lighting options and promoting the use of down lighting as a better, more cost-effective way to light 
the out-of-doors. 
"Standard lighting, unlike down lighting, wastes a lot of energy and money; it throws 50% of the light 
up into the sky rather than down on the subject." notes Thevenin . As a natural resource issue, 
conventional lighting squanders the extra fossil fuels needed to generate the electricity to power the 
lights and obliterates the nighttime sky from the wasted light unnecessarily directed upwards. 
Thevenin references studies - available through the International Down-lighting Association -
showing that down lighting, compared to standard lighting, uses less energy and reduces operating 
expense. She notes that, "Within four years communities can pay for changeover costs and begin 
to save money on their electric bills ." 
In addition to high cost, standard lighting is a pollutant to the dark night sky. Rural Minnesota, in 
Thevenin's words, has been known as "a place where people can see one of the greatest shows on 
earth - a star-studded sky." But as towns and businesses have expanded the use of standard high-
power lighting, star-studded skies began to disappear. To sustain the skies for generations to 
come, individuals and communities need to work together at using more efficient lighting 
methodologies. Down lighting is one energy-conserving, sustainable solution for rural communities. 
A core strategy of this initiative is to educate the public on the issue by talking with community 
leaders. Thevenin has spoken at informational sessions involving utility companies, city planners, 
business and civic associations , and farm owners. She is encouraging cities to rewrite outdoor 
lighting ordinances. 
Work is beginning on a possible three-community comparative cost/energy conversion model with 
the research to be undertaken by a University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management student 
supervised by an assistant professor of operations and management sciences. Discussions have 
also taken place with University of Minnesota facilities staff in reviewing campus lighting standards. 
For more information: Tine Thevenin/Nighttime Down-Lighting Project 651 345 4755 
A project_ supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/ 651 345 4336 
- - --- -- ---- - ------
FULL CIRCLE COOPERATIVE GREENHOUSE 
Oak Center, Minnesota 
Weather conditions in Minnesota are 
not always predictable. A late winter 
frost can destroy a newly planted 
field, endless drought can devastate 
a summer's crop, and heavy rain 
can flood out hopes for a harvest. 
Having to face nature's obstacles is 
a certainty for the farmer and , for 
produce farmers in southeast 
Minnesota, the outcome can spell 
the difference between failure and 
success. 
Full Circle Cooperative is a group of 
organic fruit, vegetable, herb, and 
poultry farmers who are committed 
to sustainable agricultural practices. 
For over 20 years , members of the 
Cooperative have maximized the use of solar power, wind energy and wood fuel to help extend the 
growing season and protect crops from harmful elements. 
The Cooperative sells organically grown fruits , vegetables, herbs, and poultry at the General Store 
in Oak Center and direct markets its products into the Twin Cities, Rochester, and Lake City areas. 
Products from Full Circle are in high demand. A major challenge for the Full Circle Cooperative has 
been to develop sufficient infrastructure to support its production , marketing, and delivery 
operations. 
One method Full Circle is using to help meet fresh produce demands is a renewable energy 
greenhouse facility. Steven Schwen - pictured above with his son by the greenhouse, is Full 
Circle's principal organizer. He has been developing and experimenting with greenhouse 
technology for several years. Making full use of solar energy is the goal of his latest project. 
Greenhouses, designed at the appropriate scale, can offer significant advantages to growers willing 
to make the investment in time and money required to build them. 
"A typical greenhouse would require considerable amounts of non-renewable energy," says 
Schwen. "Most greenhouses waste their daytime solar energy by venting out hot air during the day 
while the ground stays cold. " Schwen took on the challenge of overcoming these obstacles, 
appreciating the value that a well-engineered greenhouse could bring to his farm. 
Schwen has designed and built a new greenhouse that runs on renewable sources. To make full 
use of renewable resources, the design employs air pumps that channel air into large growing beds 
on the ground . The growing beds warm the soil and make conditions more suitable for plant 
growth. His model greenhouse is a case study of what can be accomplished relatively 
inexpensively and is a working example for others in southeast Minnesota. 
A University of Minnesota interdisciplinary faculty team has provided technical expertise on 
greenhouse design and offered to put on a greenhouse design workshop in the region. Full Circle 
has been participating in the Southeast Minnesota Foods Working Group developing a long-term 
University/community collaborative process. Also, Schwen has hosted classes from the College of 
Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences. 
For more information: Steven Schwen/Full Circle Cooperative 507 753-2080 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336 
ANIMAL PROCESSING STUDY TASK FORCE 
Southeast Minnesota Region 
The number of animal livestock farms in southeast 
Minnesota has been decreasing in recent years. A 
major reason has been troublesome marketplace 
economics. Farmers, in need of economically viable 
alternatives, have changed over to corn and 
soybean crops to avoid the dramatic market 
downturns. Unfortunately, the shift from livestock 
farming to row cropping can be destructive to the 
land with annual tilling that can create erosion and 
cause the loss of valuable soil nutrients. 
There is another reason livestock farms are on the 
decrease. As established livestock farmers grow 
older, the younger generation has avoided getting 
trapped in low-paying or dead-end situations and, 
thus, steered clear of animal agriculture. Also, much 
of Minnesota's livestock is shipped out of state for 
processing. This generates increased costs, draws 
wealth out of the region, and creates logistical 
problems for farmers . 
This reality led to an examination of whether the 
Experiment in Rural Cooperation should promote 
additional animal processing facilities in the region . An Animal Processing Study Task Force was 
formed to address the issues. Co-chairing the Task Force were Donna Christison - pictured above 
at the swine farm she and her husband manage outside of Plainview - and Ralph Lentz who has a 
grass-fed beef farm near Lake City. 
The Task Force held numerous meetings to interview representatives of local processing facilities 
and other animal processing operations including the proposed farmer-owned facility under 
development in Dawson, Minnesota. 
After considerable discussion, the Task Force advised against a further feasibility study on the 
expansion of processing facilities in the region. Rather, it recommended that the Experiment's 
board focus on ways to practically support traditional livestock farmers in southeast Minnesota as 
well as supporting niche or part-time specialty farming that requires adequate in-area processing 
and cold storage plants. In the Task Force's judgement, the root of the problem is not processing 
capacity. It is the fundamentals underlying traditional farming. 
The Task Force was assisted by a faculty member from University's Department of Animal Science 
as well as a state official from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. The initiative yielded a 
possible future collaboration through a University submitted grant for a 3-year project titled 
"Institutional Innovation in Livestock Value Chains" to identify options within the hog production 
sector. 
Based in part on the work of the Animal Processing Task Force, the Experiment in Rural 
Cooperation established a permanent Agriculture Committee to, among other things, concentrate 
on policy, operations and production issues relevant to livestock farming. 
For more information: Donna Christison 507 534 2826 
A project supported by the Experiment in Rural Cooperation/651 345 4336