HAFA

What HAFA does

Hmong American Farmers Association (HAFA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2011 and headquartered in West Saint Paul, Minnesota, with a mission to advance the prosperity of Hmong American farmers through cooperative endeavors, capacity building, and advocacy. The organization operates a 155-acre HAFA Farm in Vermillion Township, MN, and serves a membership of primarily Hmong American farming families in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. Core programmatic offerings include a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) subscription program, a Food Hub that aggregates and distributes produce from member farms to wholesale buyers, hands-on farmer training and technical assistance, and farm tours/educational programming.

Revenue mechanics blend earned income with philanthropic support. Earned income is generated through CSA share sales (Full Share $200, Half Share $125, Thanksgiving Veggie Share $50, ArtCrop Share $25, Membership $100), wholesale produce sales routed through the Food Hub to institutional and retail buyers, and ancillary farm-product revenue. Grants, donations, and capital campaign contributions (a multi-phase campaign totaling $5.22 million) supplement the operating base and fund land acquisition and infrastructure. Key institutional partners include the Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC), Bush Foundation, East Side Financial Center, and Ridgewater College, with research collaborations involving the University of Minnesota (UMN Grossman Lab on cover cropping).

The go-to-market approach combines a B2B wholesale channel (K-12 schools in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and surrounding districts; cooperatives including Seward Coop and East Side Coop; and retailers) with a direct-to-consumer CSA model that depends on subscription renewals. As a nonprofit, HAFA reinvests surpluses into member services, infrastructure, and land access rather than distributing profits, and growth is governed by mission rather than equity return.

Name

HAFA

Legal name

Hmong American Farmers Association

Website

https://hmongfarmers.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

HAFA is a Minnesota nonprofit founded in 2011 that supports Hmong American farmers in the Twin Cities area through cooperative capacity building, a 155-acre farm, CSA program, food hub aggregation, farmer training, and advocacy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Cooperative Services

NAICS

Farm Product Warehousing and Storage (493130), Farm Product Raw Material Merchant Wholesalers (4245), Other Farm Product Raw Material Merchant Wholesalers (424590)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700), Wholesale-Farm Product Raw Materials (5150), Public Warehousing & Storage (4220)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (Fair Trade, Food Access, Regenerative) (BPAGALAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Multi-Stakeholder Grocery Cooperatives (CRAHALAD)

Keywords

• Community supported agriculture
• Farmer cooperative services
• Agricultural training programs
• Farm to school
• Food hub aggregation

Headquarters

HQ city

West Saint Paul

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel

Revenue model

1. CSA Subscriptions: Community Supported Agriculture program selling seasonal produce shares directly to consumers. Full shares priced at $200, half shares at $125, with fall and Thanksgiving CSA options also available.
2. Wholesale Produce: Selling produce to schools, retailers, wholesalers, and institutions through the HAFA Food Hub aggregation system
3. Donations: Accepting charitable donations from individuals and organizations to support farming programs and land access

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

HAFA is a Hmong American farmer cooperative that provides land access through a 155-acre incubator farm, operates a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) subscription program, runs a Food Hub that aggregates and distributes member-farmer produce to institutional buyers, and delivers business development, training, and advocacy services to advance the prosperity of Hmong American farmers.

Product overview

HAFA is a Hmong-led farming organization offering a portfolio of interconnected agricultural programs. The core offerings include a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program with Summer, Fall, and Thanksgiving seasonal produce shares; a Food Hub for aggregating and distributing farmer produce to wholesale buyers; and farmer membership with training, land access, and cooperative purchasing benefits. Additional services include farm tours, speaking engagements, volunteer programs, and business development support. All programs work together to advance the prosperity of Hmong American farmers through cooperative endeavors, capacity building and advocacy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program Seasonal subscription program offering weekly produce shares directly to community members in the Twin Cities area. Full shares priced at $200 for fall season, half shares at $125, with Thanksgiving and ArtCrop add-ons also available.
• HAFA Food Hub Food aggregation and distribution service that collects produce from HAFA farmer members and sells to schools, retailers, wholesalers, restaurants, and institutions. Provides year-round delivery via refrigerated truck.
• Farm Tours Educational hands-on tours of the 155-acre HAFA Farm conducted May through October, lasting 1 to 1.5 hours, demonstrating and educating on various farming topics tailored to group interests.
• Speaking Engagements HAFA speakers available for events to present on the organizational mission, Hmong farming traditions, food justice, and related topics. Requests submitted via form with 3-5 business day response time.
• HAFA Membership Program Membership program for Hmong American farmers requiring 3+ years farming experience, 3+ acres of land, farmers market participation, and $1 million liability insurance. Includes lease opportunities at HAFA Farm and access to cooperative purchasing, training, and business development support.
• Farmer Training Programs Agricultural and business training sessions covering high tunnel cultivation, drip irrigation, food safety planning, GAP certification, post-harvest handling, break-even analysis, cooperative farming, and organic practices. Includes a train-the-trainer model.
• Volunteer Program Volunteer opportunities for CSA packing (Mondays at 1pm), gardening, weeding, trimming, harvesting, and farm maintenance activities. Group volunteer requests (5+ people) require advance contact.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 48 farmers saved over $80,300 through Business Development Program
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014LEDC helped start HAFA and served as its fiscal agent in the inaugural period. The two organizations received a $600,000 grant to develop a bicultural and bilingual training program for immigrant farmers.
• East Side Financial CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with HAFA for 5 years to offer financial counseling and training to farmers through the Business Development Program, helping farmers save over $80,000.
• Ridgewater CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with HAFA to provide agricultural financial training to farmers and their families as part of the Business Development Program.
• University of Minnesota Grossman LabminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConducts research on cover crops and Hmong farming practices and their effects on soil health.
• ArtCropminorGTM or Marketing PartnerArt collaboration bringing handcrafted items featuring Hmong batik fabric to the Thanksgiving CSA program.
• Saint Paul Academy and Summit SchoolminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSchool students participate in educational farm visits and volunteer activities at HAFA Farm.
• Conservation Corps MinnesotaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerVolunteer program where corps members learn about food and social justice while volunteering on the farm. Since 2015, they have assisted with farm infrastructure including building storage sheds.
• Kimmes-Bauer Well DiggingminorOthersInstalled agricultural grade well on the eastern parcel of HAFA Farm to provide irrigation access.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Dream of Wild Health: Minnesota nonprofit operating an Indigenous-led farm, youth training, and Indigenous food sovereignty CSA; comparable as a Twin Cities-area minority-led farming nonprofit with CSA, training, and cultural-mission framing.
• Big River Farms (The Food Group): Minnesota nonprofit operating a 155-acre farm incubator and farmer training program serving immigrant and BIPOC growers with land access, training, and wholesale aggregation — directly parallel to HAFA's mission, model, and Twin Cities geography.
• Agriculture and Land-Based Training Association (ALBA): California nonprofit that provides farmland access, training, and wholesale aggregation for immigrant and limited-resource farmers; mirrors HAFA's land-incubator + cooperative aggregation approach at larger scale.
• Intervale Center: Vermont nonprofit running a long-established farm incubator, food hub, and CSA program; a regional peer that offers land leases, training, and aggregation distribution comparable to HAFA's full-stack farmer support model.
• The Good Acre: Minnesota-based nonprofit food hub that aggregates produce from local farmers for wholesale and CSA distribution; comparable as a fellow Twin Cities food hub serving immigrant and emerging farmers, and already a HAFA distribution/customer relationship.
• New Roots for Refugees (Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas): Refugee farmer training incubator in Kansas City that supports immigrant women growers with land, training, and CSA/market access; functionally identical cooperative-support model targeting a different immigrant community.

Others

• Farmers Market Coalition: National nonprofit supporting farmers markets; relevant as HAFA channels member farmers into St. Paul Farmers Market and similar venues, making it an enabling/ecosystem organization rather than a direct competitor.
• Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC): Minneapolis-based economic development nonprofit and HAFA's founding fiscal partner; adjacent rather than directly competing because LEDC provides broader small-business development and was HAFA's predecessor/incubator.
• Minnesota Department of Agriculture - AGRI Program: State agency funding farm-to-school and value-added producer grants in Minnesota; comparable as an institutional buyer/funding partner for HAFA's farm-to-school wholesale and capital campaign, but not a market competitor.

Regional players

• Land Stewardship Project: Minnesota-based nonprofit focused on sustainable agriculture, immigrant farmer support, and policy advocacy; comparable in mission overlap (especially around Hmong/immigrant farming) but operates more as a policy/advocacy organization than a food hub.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/hafafarmers
• Facebookfacebook.com/hafafarmers
• Instagraminstagram.com/hafafarmers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hmong-american-farmers-association

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HAFA