News + Announcements

We are excited to share that Community and Economic Development Associates, CEDA,
has released its 2025 Annual Report.

This year’s report highlights the meaningful progress made alongside the communities we serve; demonstrating how, together, we continue helping small communities do BIG things. From economic growth initiative to local business retention and growth, these accomplishments reflect the strength of collaboration and community and economic development in rural America.

You can view the full Annual Report here:
2025 CEDA Annual Report

We also invite you to mark your calendar for our upcoming annual meeting:

Date: Friday, October 2, 2026
Location: Sugar Lake Lodge – Cohasset, MN

Additional information regarding the Annual Meeting will be forthcoming. The Annual Meeting will be an opportunity to reflect on the past year, celebrate CEDA’s 40 year anniversary, look ahead to future growth and opportunities, and connect with partners and community members who share a commitment to rural vitality and economic growth.

Thank you for being part of the work that makes our communities stronger.

by Michelle Sharp

A real live wool baroness—right here in Minnesota!

Theresa Bentz of Get Bentz Farm builds an interactive agricultural experience in the hills outside Northfield. Grass-fed sheep battle invasive species, on-farm fiber art days encourage community, discard wool becomes garden food and two city kids experiment daily with their hypothesis about a different way to live and work.

After years working in higher education and corporate careers, Jake and Theresa cut a new path for their family. “Although I was guaranteed a paycheck working for somebody else, I wasn’t guaranteed satisfaction, respect or to be valued for the commitment I gave,” reflects Theresa. “If I worked 80 hours a week teaching, no one would pat me on the back. I decided to work for myself and set my own standards. That understanding took away the fear of starting our own business.”

A NEW SPACE

At the start, the farm focused on pasture-raised direct-to-consumer sheep and lamb meat sold at farmers markets. They raise their flock following sustainable practices of rotating pastures and allowing the sheep to browse a diverse array of plants. Their lamb is regularly on Northfield’s Ole Store’s menu, including custom lamb brats.

Persistent drought conditions in Minnesota forced the decision to reduce the size of their flock. Diving headfirst into fiber art production and agritourism allowed their farm to expand its available products while maintaining a sustainable presence on their land. When guests come to the farm they meet the sheep, visit the natural dye garden, walk in the pasture and see the on-site mill. Being at the farm allows guests to appreciate the cycle that produces both the meat for their meals and the textiles that clothe them. 

YOU CAN’T HAVE YARN WITHOUT FARMS

Being recognized as an agricultural producer when the farm shifted into fiber arts proved to be a challenge. “I had to fight pretty hard to get into farmers markets and not be seen as a crafter,” states Theresa. “Textiles are agricultural products. The yarn that makes the cloth that makes your clothing, unless it’s polyester, came from an animal. We’ve largely become very disconnected from our textile production just like we have with large scale food production. When I speak at knitters guilds, agricultural conventions or wellness centers, I bring it back to where these items come from. It wakes people up as to why I’m a farmer selling textile products.”

Theresa reflected on the fact that textiles used to be a form of currency. In fact, the tremendously wealthy and influential Medici Family gained their fortune through the production and sale of wool. During the two global world wars, women knitted morse code messages into socks and scarves sent to the front. There’s a tremendous creative space in fiber arts, which are enjoying a resurgence in respect. “Grandma skills” are trending with crocheting, knitting and upcycling textiles to make something new all having active followings on line and in real life.

BUILDING BADGER FACE FIBER

As the baroness of Get Bentz Farm, Theresa uses both wool from her flock and fleece purchased from shepherds throughout the region to create her signature products. “I love that I’ve become a producer of yarn in our industry,” smiles Theresa. “I enjoy having control over the end product. I get to collaborate with others to create something that people use.”

In 2024 Get Bentz established a new product line, Badger Face Fiber, named for an esteemed founding member of their flock. Being a part of the “yarn beast” as Theresa calls it, allows her to create and facilitate others’ creations. “I love the creating part. I love getting in there and having all this raw material for me to make something,” explains Theresa. “It’s really, really cool when people show me what they’ve made from a product we created. They know that our yarn will never be the same twice because the animals are different every time you shear. We’re all learning to appreciate the variability.”

Get Bentz and Badger Face customers know to purchase the yarn for their full project up front. Once a particular batch is gone, it’s gone.

GROWING WITH RBIL

Get Bentz is a graduate of the 2024 cohort of the Rural Business Innovation Lab. Founded by CEDA, RBIL is a cohort-based, entrepreneurial program that redefines the narrative of rural decline. Each cohort builds a peer network dense with ideas, expertise and resources that help rural small businesses start and scale their work within their communities. Working in both Minnesota and Wisconsin, RBIL supports rural businesses in their growth to become sustainable drivers of economic health.

The content and interactions of the RBIL program helped Theresa recognize what she did and, perhaps even more importantly, what she did not want to do during a big year of growth for their farm business. “The coaches at RBIL helped me push myself into areas where I didn’t think I was going to be comfortable,” says Theresa. “I bought a Yamper because we identified that I didn’t have a good place to sell my yarn on the farm. It’s turned out to be really fun. Our yarn camper is a mobile yarn mobile. We now are able to participate in events where we wouldn’t have otherwise because of building this mobile interactive space.”

Theresa also emphasized how the RBIL program helped organize her thoughts about the business. “Knowing about the resources available is so important,” states Theresa. “Also the coaches helped us sort out what parts of our business we wanted to scale up and what was as big as we want it to be.”

GET IN TOUCH

Sign up for the monthly Get Bentz newsletter, which includes the perspective of the flock itself, at https://getbentzfarm.com

View upcoming classes and on-farm events, browse the fibers, woolen products and locally-processed meats available. Find Get Bentz at the Linden Hills and Mill City Farmers Markets.

Follow @getbentzfarm on Facebook and Instagram for Theresa’s sustainable fashion inspiration, sassy sheep and life on the farm.

Contact Cameron Payne cameron.payne@cedausa.com at RBIL to learn more about the program. Visit https://www.cedausa.com/ruralinnovation/ for a program overview.

Follow Meet the Minnesota Makers @meettheminnesotamakers on Ambit, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

 

This story was originally published to Meet the Minnesota Makers and is shared with permission. The link to the original article can be found here.

By Michelle Sharp

Minnesota soil turns out to have just the right qualities for growing high-quality ginseng.

Traditionally associated with Eastern medicine, small servings of ginseng are said to promote wellbeing, cognitive sharpness, and strong energy levels.

With over 70 years of combined experience, Tyler Saemrow of Morristown’s Ty’s Ginseng learned to grow ginseng under his grandfather’s tutelage starting when he was 10 years old. “I love being out in the woods and simply watching our plants grow. It takes time, lots of it, but it’s so worth it.”

“The best part about growing ginseng is that I am able to work with my grandpa, mom and dad every day,” shares Tyler. “Not too many people can say that.”

Tyler’s grandfather Ernest Hering used to hunt wild ginseng that grew in southeastern Minnesota’s river banks. Over time he and a friend collected seeds that they planted back in their own woods.

AN UNEXPECTED APPRENTICESHIP

Tyler started working with ginseng by going out into the woods each fall with his grandfather to transplant roots and select which ones to harvest. Tyler learned how to clean and dry the roots to prepare them for sale—often to destinations in New York City and San Francisco.

“I enjoyed the time outside, but it seemed like a lot of work at the time,” reflects Tyler. “I never thought that someday I wanted to be the one growing ginseng in our woods.”

Every year Tyler assumed more responsibility with the process. He valued being involved. Accompanying his grandfather on a sales trip during his senior year of high school brought the whole cycle of the process to life. “I really enjoyed meeting the buyers. I got to meet so many people and hear their stories about what they do with our ginseng. Then I was really in.”

TURNING LOCAL

After that trip, Tyler and his grandfather planted a new ginseng field on his dad’s dairy farm. His grandfather told Tyler that that was his woods, so Tyler was fully responsible for the care of those new plants. When those roots were ready to harvest in 2020, the sales trips with national and international buyers were not possible due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Looking locally for new customers, they applied to the Minneapolis Farmers Market. They’ve been there regularly ever since educating market visitors about ginseng and sharing their harvest in both whole roots and ground powdered form.

Establishing Ty’s Ginseng means that their harvest goes directly to their consumers rather than being brokered through a middleman. From that initial woods created with his grandfather, Tyler now manages five fields. “I never really inherited his ginseng,” explains Tyler. “I inherited the knowledge. We started from scratch on the whole growing of the ginseng for our new business.”

WORTH THE WAIT

Roots are typically at least six years old before being dried and processed into powder, the most typical way that people use the prized root. The longer it grows, the stronger its potency. Ginseng plants thrive in shaded conditions, making them an ideal agroforestry crop. A drought resistant plant, dry summers make for steady growing conditions. Winters without snow cover, however, pose a challenge as turkeys and other critters dig up the plants.

“It’s still hard even with our combined 70 years of experience,” states Tyler. “Every year we have a new challenge. It’s like, why did those seeds not sprout? Why did this section not come up this year? Or why are they only coming up like this? You have to be patient and wait. Your plans go through a lot in the six to seven years that it takes for the roots to be ready.”
Even after harvest, timing is key. Depending on their size, roots take three to five weeks to dry under controlled conditions. Tyler and his family process all the roots in a commercial kitchen so that their powder can be sold in retail locations.

“We’re small and we’re learning,” says Tyler. “We take a lot of pride in what we do. We don’t rush things. We want to try to get the best ginseng root possible.”

GROWING WITH RBIL

Ty’s Ginseng is a member of the 2025 cohort of the Rural Business Innovation Lab. RBIL is a cohort-based, entrepreneurial program that redefines the narrative of rural decline. Each cohort builds a peer network dense with ideas, expertise, and resources that help rural small businesses start and scale their work within their communities.

Working in both Minnesota and Wisconsin, RBIL supports rural businesses in their growth to become sustainable drivers of economic health.

The desire to make Ty’s Ginseng a sustainable business for his family made Tyler think that RBIL’s entrepreneurial program could pull them closer to their goals. “Meeting with the coaches gives me a different head space, a different perspective on how we could be marketing and selling our ginseng,” explains Tyler. “It’s amazing to have the reassurance of talking with someone who knows about the bigger picture and helps you sort through the possibilities for
moving your business forward.”

Working with other businesses has a huge impact too. “Working with the farmers market and selling direct to consumers is a whole new way of creating a business. Just being able to get new ideas and share them with the other members of the cohort has been so good for us.”

MINNESOTA GROWN GINSENG

Find Ty’s Ginseng each summer at the Minneapolis Farmers Market or order direct at www.tysginseng.com

Follow along in the shaded fields on Facebook and Instagram.

Contact Cameron Payne cameron.payne@cedausa.com at RBIL to learn more about the program. Visit https://www.cedausa.com/ruralinnovation/ for a program overview.

Follow Meet the Minnesota Makers @meettheminnesotamakers on Ambit, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

 

This story was originally published to Meet the Minnesota Makers and is shared with permission. The link to the original article can be found here.