7 years ago

Our commitment to local farmers

Some of the best produce in the country is grown right here in Minnesota, which is why we’re committed to offering fruits and vegetables from local growers whenever possible. It’s our way of supporting the local economy, reducing our carbon footprint and bringing you the freshest possible produce every single day.

Meet some of our partners:

Axdahl’s Garden Farm & Greenhouse:
Featuring top-quality sweet corn, green beans, tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, cucumbers and more, grown in the fertile St. Croix Valley of Stillwater.

Bushel Boy Farms: Grown
down in Owatanna, Bushel Boy tomatoes are sent right to our stores within days of being picked. Their tomatoes are grown year-round in greenhouses to help conserve water.

Costa Farm: This family-owned farm, located in White Bear Lake, has been in business since 1925. They farm 80 acres of vegetables and have been recognized for their high-quality fresh produce.

Doug Dose Produce: Located in Rochester, this farm is proud to provide Lunds & Byerlys with the perfect pumpkin. These pumpkins would make Charlie Brown proud!

Ed Fields and Sons: The Fields family farm has called Anoka home for generations, growing fresh carrots, radishes, green onions, parsnips, turnips, kohlrabi and beets.

Fireside Orchard and Gardens: Located just outside of Northfield, this 40-acre farm has been around since 1985 and offers over 20 apple varieties.

Forever Yours Farm: Located near Hinckley, Forever Yours Farms grows certified organic fresh living basil plants and assorted organic herb varieties.

Fresh Bar: Fresh Bar was created by a pair of Minnesota twins, Will Handke and Ross Pomeroy (yes, different last names); the result of their effort is Fresh Bar. Will and Ross’s goal was to make a snack bar with natural, whole ingredients that tastes great, is healthy and maintains its straight-out-of-the-oven texture.

Gray Schmidt FarmProviding our stores with a fantastic array of beautiful vine-ripened heirloom tomatoes and an excellent vine-ripened hybrid red tomato. Grown without herbicides or pesticides in Winsted, Minnesota.

Gray Potato Farm: This fourth-generation family farm in Clear Lake, Minnesota, has supplied red potatoes to Lunds & Byerlys for 10 years. They also raise sweet corn, soybeans, strawberries, blueberries and raspberries.

Hmong American Farmers: We are proud to partner with the Hmong American Farmers Association (HAFA). They are a nonprofit organization that was created in 2011 to serve, support and advocate for Hmong American farmers and their families.

Joe Zywiec Vegetable Farm: Located in Cottage Grove, this exceptional sweet corn farm has been in business for 73 years.

Pahl Farms: From nearby Apple Valley, the Pahl family farms have been a local favorite for many years. They grow a variety of fresh produce, including the new variety of Tasti-Lee tomatoes and the MinneSweet peppers.

Pepin Heights Orchard: In business since 1949, Pepin Heights was the first commercial grower of Honeycrisp apples. Today, they’re Minnesota’s largest apple grower, as well as the largest grower and distributor of Honeycrisp apples in the nation. In addition to Honeycrisp, they offer over a dozen different varieties of apples and partner with the University of Minnesota to plant and test new apple varieties.

Riverside Farms: Located in Elk River since 1980, Riverside offers over 450 acres of sweet corn, cabbage, green peppers, summer squash, winter squash and pumpkins – all grown using environmentally-friendly farming methods.

Salad Girl: The original “salad girl” Pam Powell got her start as a dishwasher at Madden’s Resort on Gull Lake before she started producing homemade organic salad dressings. Today, Salad Girl Dressings are available in a variety of flavors inspired by seasonal garden flavors, herbs, spices and colors.

Seed of Change Farm: Alex Smrekar is proudly known as the “Pepper King.” Alex has a vast education in agriculture and knowledge of a multitude of varieties of hot peppers. His farm also has many unique varieties of eggplants.

Stoney Brook Farms: Located in Foley, Stoney Brook Farms provides us with a variety of decorative pumpkins of all sizes for decorating and eating.

Twin Cities Harvest:  It’s taken five generations and nearly 100 years to produce the best corn you’ve ever eaten: Amaize is a white sweet corn with crisp yet tender kernels and a flavor that’s unsurpassed. It’s grown in Minnesota and available exclusively at Lunds & Byerlys.

Vine Valley Farm: Family owned since 1947, Vine Valley Farm rests 60 miles west of the Twin Cities near Hutchinson. They use sustainable farming practices to create healthier, locally grown produce.

In addition to our Minnesota partners, we also work with the following Iowa and Wisconsin farmers:

Harmony Valley Farms: This family-owned farm is located in an isolated valley in southwestern Wisconsin and best known for its season-long, high-quality salad mix, sauté greens and spinach. Owner Richard de Wilde has over 40 years of experience growing organic vegetables.

Hill & Valley Farms:Certified organic growers from the fertile valleys of Viroqua, Wisconsin. These farms provide high quality organic produce from the co-operative efforts of Amish farmers.

Mariposa Farms: Fresh, locally grown herbs from Grinnell, Iowa – picked, packed and shipped for the freshest cut herbs available.

St. Croix Valley Produce: Baldwin, Wisconsin is home to this co-operative of Amish farmers who proudly grow some of the finest organic produce available.

We value the relationships we’ve built with local farmers! Look for signs posted throughout our produce department with photos and stories of our local growers and their families.