Producer

Before moving to Minnesota, LyLee farmed in California for 15 years, and in Laos and Thailand before that. The soil on her farm in Big Lake is sandy, granting her a fairly weed-free farm. Lucky her! To supplement her income in the offseason, LyLee sells egg rolls and wontons in the winter at the same farmer's market she sells at during the growing season.

Like a lot of Hmong farmers, LyLee rents her land. Renting land is one reason many Hmong farmers in our area don't seek organic certification. Still, LyLee farms with no chemical inputs and does all of her harvesting by hand.