Shortly after arriving in Minnesota in 1995, William Thao's Hmong parents began farming their new home land just like many Hmong refugees do. While the soil and climate are different from the hills and mountains of Laos and Thailand that they're used to, Thao's parents brought and adapted their traditional subsistence and small-scale agriculture practices to the state, growing lilies and peonies alongside vegetables like Brussels sprouts, corn, asparagus and tomatoes. The larger Hmong immigrant community that they're a part of has introduced Minnesotans to treats like bitter melon and various Thai chili peppers.
In the decades that have followed, Hmong farmers have found a natural match in the almost 70 farmers' markets that dot the Twin Cities metro area. Today, Hmong farmers make up roughly 50% of the growers at metro markets. Despite their critical role in local food production, the challenges that all growers contend with tend to hit Hmong farmers harder. Language barriers keep the group from accessing resources more readily available to English-speaking farmers while their elemental approach to growing can leave them ill prepared to weather catastrophes like the major drought that hit the state last year.
