Annual Conference

Annual-Conference-Logo

Saturday, February 11, 2023
Gorecki Conference Center
College of Saint Benedict, St. Joseph

Early bird registration is now open!

$50 for current SFA members, $75 for nonmembers.  Ends December 31, 2022. Prices go up by $25 on January 1, 2023!
Emerging Farmers:  Free

Children's program (ages 5-12): $10

Lunch ticket in St. Ben's excellent cafeteria: $15.  (You may also do lunch on your own.)

Register HERE.

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With topics including:

  • Fruit & Vegetable Soil Health and Profitability
  • Grazing Strategies
  • "Burn the Box" Changing Ag Paradigms
  • Beekeeping
  • Farm Profitability
  • Emerging Farmer Resources
  • Climate Adaptability
  • New Cooperative Marketing Models
  • and more!

Full schedule coming soon.

Sponsor and Exhibitor Opportunities

Please consider partnering with us on SFA's flagship event for farmer-to-farmer education and networking.

More information and an application form are HERE.

Our 2023 Sponsors

BLOOM SPONSORS

Afternoon Social Sponsor

Lakewinds Co-op

A community owned grocery store with 3 locations in the Twin Cities Metro area, Lakewinds' mission is to promote sustainable agriculture, support local makers. and nourish our community. No membership required to shop, and all are welcome!

Opening Plenary Session Sponsor

Compeer

SAPLING SPONSORS

MAWQCP

A voluntary opportunity for farmers and ag landowners to take the lead in conservation practices that protect our water while obtaining regulatory certainty for 10 years.

MN Department of Agriculture

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture mission is to enhance all Minnesotans' quality of life by equitably ensuring the integrity of our food supply, the health of our environment and the strength and resilience of our agricultural community.

SEED SPONSORS

Solar Farm LLC

Solar Electric (PV) design, sales and installation.

A look back at our 2022 conference:
Why attend our Annual Conference? Take it from these farmers:

Our Blog

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Who are SFA members? Meet Bianca Goncalves Da Costa.

By SFA of MN | Oct 24, 2024 |

Who are SFA members? We call ourselves the “farmer-to-farmer network,” but our ecosystem is far wider. We attract and partner with people and organizations interested in shifting the agricultural paradigm from an extractive model to a regenerative one. Our 1,300 members include both seasoned and new farmers and ranchers, as well as agricultural educators, agency…

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Who are SFA members? Meet Dayna Burtness.

By SFA of MN | Oct 24, 2024 |

Who are SFA members? We call ourselves the “farmer-to-farmer network,” but our ecosystem is far wider. We attract and partner with people and organizations interested in shifting the agricultural paradigm from an extractive model to a regenerative one. Our 1,300 members include both seasoned and new farmers and ranchers, as well as agricultural educators, agency…

Read More

Who are SFA members? Meet Tom Barthel.

By SFA of MN | Oct 23, 2024 |

Who are SFA members? We call ourselves the “farmer-to-farmer network,” but our ecosystem is far wider. We attract and partner with people and organizations interested in shifting the agricultural paradigm from an extractive model to a regenerative one. Our 1,300 members include both seasoned and new farmers and ranchers, as well as agricultural educators, agency…

Read More

Join SFA during our Fall New Member Drive!

By SFA of MN | Oct 21, 2024 |

For more than 30 years the Sustainable Farming Association has brought together Minnesotans interested in improving soil health, growing healthy food, and revitalizing rural communities. Our “Farmer-to-Farmer” network continues to bring together farmers, ranchers, researchers, advocates, ag professionals, and eaters to transform agriculture, one farm at a time. Become a member during SFA’s fall new member drive…

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Announcing SFA’s new mission and strategic plan: Sharpening the focus of our work to serve you better.

By SFA of MN | Oct 18, 2024 |

By Lucinda Winter, Executive Director After many months of work by our staff, consultants, board directors and all of you who completed our first-ever survey, I’m delighted to share SFA’s new mission and strategic roadmap with you. This new mission and focus for our work felt necessary at this time. Our previous strategic plan was…

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“Round up” for Farmers at Lakewinds throughout October

By SFA of MN | Oct 15, 2024 |

October is National Co-op month, and while you’re visiting Lakewinds Food Co-op you can also support SFA! Throughout October, you have the opportunity to round up your bill at any of Lakewinds’ three locations (Richfield, Minnetonka, and Chanhassen). Proceeds will go towards our pilot On-Farm Consulting program. Led by fellow farmers, this program is one of the ways we’re…

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SFA’s Midwest Soil Health Summit Evolves

By SFA of MN | Oct 4, 2024 |

By Jonathan Kilpatrick • Farmer Education Director For 11 years, the Sustainable Farming Association has proudly hosted the Midwest Soil Health Summit, an educational event developed during a time when soil health was still a budding concept. According to our resident historians, the Summit emerged as a platform for sharing agricultural innovations and assisting farmers…

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Seed School Seeks Students for October Intensive

By SFA of MN | Sep 19, 2024 |

SFA and North Circle Seeds owner Zachary Paige are pleased to announce an intensive, multi-day Seed School, to be held at the North Circle Seeds Farm in Vergas, MN October 25-27th, 2024. This opportunity is made possible through a grant from West Central Initiative Foundation (WCIF). Zachary will lead a three-day immersive training where participants…

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Cover Crop Options after Small Grain Harvest

By SFA of MN | Aug 7, 2024 |

By Jonathan Kilpatrick • Farmer Education Director While persistent rainfall across the state is delaying the start of small grain harvest for many farmers, this downtime can be used to plan for post-harvest cover crops. Planting cover crops immediately after harvesting small grains like wheat, barley, or oats can be highly beneficial and is a…

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August 8 Café Chat to explore no-till and cover crops

By SFA of MN | Aug 5, 2024 |

Could implementing practices like cover crops and no-till on your farm work for you and your bottom line? What if you could get paid to do it? Enjoy a meal and conversation with area farmers and your Soil Water Conservation District this Thursday, August 8 from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Duffy’s Riverside Saloon…

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Our Blog

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From the Executive Director: Field Day Series Previews Soil Data Project Findings

By SFA of MN | Aug 2, 2021

The first three in a series of five field days to discuss soil health research featured farmer-led programs at the Michael Larson Farm in Stephen, Doubting Thomas Farm near Moorhead with Noreen Thomas, the Pfarr farm near Lamberton with Brain and Bill Pfarr and Grant & Dawn Breitkreutz’s Stoney Creek Farm near Redwood Falls. The…

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Dirt Rich: Silvopasture Library Revisited

By kfeterl | Jul 21, 2021

In anticipation of our trio of silvopasture field days and workshops next week, we wanted to highlight the five episodes we’ve made that cover this management approach with ecological and indigenous origins: Episode 9: “Silvopasture in Minnesota” with SFA’s Tyler Carlson and Jared Luhman. Episode 10: “Implementing Silvopasture” with SFA’s Tyler Carlson and Jared Luhman.…

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Dirt Rich: The Potential of Perennial Crops & Kernza

By kfeterl | Jul 18, 2021

“I’m so heartened by the work that our farmers are doing, that our researchers are doing, to create these really sustainable crops–they’re actually regenerative crops–that are not only delicious on the plate, but really good for the land.” Beth Dooley shares the excitement for Minnesota perennial crops and Kernza that she, Jacob Jungers, and Peter…

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DGA Update: Take the lead in protecting water

By awalter | Jul 16, 2021

SFA has partnered with NRCS to promote the MN Ag Water Quality Certification Program (MAWQCP).  This program is supported by the Natural Resource Conservation Service’s Resource Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP).  There are currently 1,085 farms certified in the MAWQCP making up 780,000 acres. The MAWQCP is a voluntary opportunity for farmers and agricultural landowners to…

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Beyond Your Backyard: A historic day on the prairie

By mbenage | Jul 6, 2021

I know I promised to uncover the amazing underground world of prairie soils for this next one, but I can’t help but share a historic moment from the prairie! In June, Federally threatened, Dakota skippers, a rare prairie butterfly were released back onto the Minnesota prairie as part of a huge partnership effort to make…

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Zimmerli: First MN River Chapter Farm Gathering a Success!

By dzimmerli | Jul 6, 2021

The first MN River Chapter Farm Gathering was held at Under the Sun Herbs by owners Bil Carda and Alise Torgusen and was a huge success. Farmers from the chapter got an overview of Bil and Alise’s operation including the tools they use, caterpillar tunnel end wall designs, raised beds overview, and converting conventional corn…

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Twin Cities Metro Growers Network Tours Holistic Health Farms

By kfeterl | Jul 5, 2021

The heat didn’t stop Twin Cities Metro Growers Network from enjoying our very first live, in-person event of 2021! About 20 metro growers gathered for a tour at Holistic Health Farms in St. Paul to learn about creative crop cultivation in small spaces. Tim Page and Cherry Flowers showed us the ginger, garlic, turmeric, tomatoes, galangal, herb…

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Dirt Rich: Growing a CSA from 8 to 80

By kfeterl | Jul 2, 2021

Get to know our SFA Community Organizer and Outreach Coordinator, Dan Zimmerli, in today’s episode of Dirt Rich! Dan farms full time with his wife at Cedar Crate Farm southeast of Mankato, growing produce for their CSA members. They started out with 8 members in their first season in 2015, and six seasons later they’ve…

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Luhman: New Soil Health for Fruit and Vegetable Growers Resources

By jluhman | Jun 29, 2021

Soil Health is an incredible concept but can be difficult to implement because how we create soil health can be different on every single farm. A practice that works in one area may not work in another, and practices that work in one type of production system may not work in another production system. The important…

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