Minnesota Farm Families of the Year : Ramsey County


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Ramsey County
May Lee & Family

May Lee grew up in Laos where she became a farmer at the age of 8. May left Laos in the late 1970s, spent 1 year in a Thai refugee camp, and came to St. Paul with her husband and 2 children in 1981. Because access to farm land has been a challenge, May has rented land whenever the opportunity has presented itself. Since 2007, she has farmed at the Minnesota Food Association and has grown a variety of vegetables including bell peppers, tomatoes, onions, and peas. May works with her daughter, Mhonpaj and their operation is certified organic. In addition to their land at Minnesota Food Association, May also uses a greenhouse in Mahtomedi where she grows traditional herbs. She sells her products at area farmers’ markets, through her daughter’s CSA, and through the Minnesota Food Association.

Each year May and her family plan cooking shows to demonstrate to others how to prepare the Hmong post partum diet. As part of the Mill City Museum’s Hmong cultural celebration, they show others how to cook Hmong greens, and at the Roseville Arboretum, they have demonstrated preparation of a Hmong herbs chicken diet.