We all got pretty chilly standing in the frozen mud as Regi gave a brief introduction to the production buildings and process, but as soon as we ducked into the building it was warm and toasty and we all became quick friends with those hens!

Used as a prototype building this season, only about 25 laying hens lived in the building through the winter, but has capacity for 750 birds to have ample space. The building is entirely heated by the sun. It is a simple wood and plastic-sheeting construction, with a large south-facing wall with a double-layer of polycarbonate sheets for extra insulation. The building is tall enough to house a raised tank to keep water flowing through the gravity-fed tubing to waterers. Both sides of the building open up to allow chickens to free range during the day.

Winter poultry production is a marvelous opportunity on multiple levels — first, it will provide southeastern Minnesota with locally-produced, community-based, sustainably-raised meat through the winter season, but of equal importance is the job opportunity it provides to Latin@s whose usual seasonal work means they are more likely to be unemployed in the winter.

After lots of good questions and discussion at the farm, we trekked back through the thawing mud and returned to the office for delicious tamales made with Hillside Co-op chicken by the mother of some of the participants. Regi gave a brief introduction to the Agripreneur Training Program that will commence in the summer, and was met with lots of interested questions and discussion.

Upcoming Saturday programs will cover financial literacy, building credit, budget management, and general popular education activities  to begin to build community amongst the trainees.

The tour in numbers:
Finca Mirasol supplies 150 families with fresh free range poultry, Open Hands serves 80 members under their Community Supported Agriculture operation model (CSA), Greenvale Park Community Garden has 40 plots and Stogrow grows thousands of pounds of produce for St. Olaf cafeteria that is served fresh to students.

The Tour in Perspective:
Northfield is surrounded by great productive lands where we could easily grow most of the food for this town right here, and reduce the carbon footprint derived from transporting food across the country. What we saw today is just an example of what is going on in our area, it is clear that we have the knowledge, talent and resources right here to feed our small towns. All we need now is leadership, an increased community awareness, and transformation of corn and soybean fields into food production.

CONTACT: Kat Vann, Main Street Project, (612) 879-7578

Innovative Free-Range Poultry Operation Launches in Cannon Falls
Media is invited to tour Prink’s Farm on Saturday, Aug. 22, 10 a.m.
11055 – 317 St., Cannon Falls

CANNON FALLS, Minn. – The Rural Enterprise Center, a program of Main Street Project, is pleased to announce the launch of a unique, new free-range poultry operation in Cannon Falls. Prink’s Farm is the second member of the new Hillside Farmers Cooperative to deploy the Rural Enterprise Center model for raising free-range poultry and other products using sustainable farming practices. The innovative model builds on the experiences, culture and knowledge in intensive farming systems that new immigrants bring to the southern Minnesota region, while incorporating the resources of established farmers looking for ways to diversify their farms and support the community.

Todd Prink, owner of Prink’s Farm, is an investment manager and life-long Cannon Falls farmer who began raising organic products in 1985. The new poultry operation is a partnership between Prink and Eladio Evan-de Carpio and family – another member of the co-op. “As a long-time farmer, it’s very exciting to be part of something with this much potential,” says Prink. “We’re working together to raise happy, healthy and great-tasting chickens, and actually improving the environment in the process.”

The first poultry operation, called Finca Mirasol (“Sunflower Farm”), began a year ago and is located in Northfield. The co-op has a distribution partnership with Thousand Hills Cattle Company, also of Cannon Falls. Both co-op locations also sell whole chickens direct to the public.

“This is an important step in building out what we call an ‘economic unit’ in the development system,” explained Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin, Rural Enterprise Center Director and model’s creator. “We’ll continue to improve the system’s efficiency while also offering a superior product to local and regional customers.”
The public can purchase Hillside Farmers Cooperative free-range chickens or tour Prink’s Farm operations on Saturdays, 8 a.m. – noon, beginning Aug. 22 through Oct. 31. Prink’s Farm is located at 11055 – 317 St., Cannon Falls, and will sell Finca Mirasol poultry until their own flock matures.

The Rural Enterprise Center is a program of Main Street Project that focuses on economic development. Our mission is to strengthen communities by bringing together the support infrastructure, resources and projects that rural Latino entrepreneurs need to succeed. For more information, visit ruralEC.com or MainStreetProject.org.