Naturally MN

Today’s the LAST day to save 50% on your Food. Ag. Ideas 2026 ticket! Join farmers, founders, brands, researchers, investors, and industry leaders on October 27 for a full day of conversations, inspiring speakers, and meaningful connections. This year’s event features: 🌾 An optional behind-the-scenes Minnesota State Fair tour on October 26 🎤 Keynotes and panels with leaders shaping the future of food and agriculture 🤝 Interactive networking opportunities 🥂 A joint happy hour with attendees from the Reuters Transform Food Conference  Use code FAI26EARLYBIRD1 today for 50% off your ticket! Don’t miss your last chance to save. Register here: https://lnkd.in/ge2Ahgj8 Allison Hohn

What makes Minnesota different? For generations, Minnesota has built a thriving food and agriculture ecosystem rooted in cooperation, innovation, and stewardship. In today's environment, mounting systemic volatility is impacting the industry: climate change, tariffs, supply chain disruption, MAHA, GLP-1 medications, shifts in consumer behavior, geopolitics, and more. At FAI 2026, we'll explore The Minnesota Model—the businesses, practices, partnerships, and innovations being built here that are creating resilience for the industry and what communities across the country can learn from them. Register today: https://lnkd.in/ge2Ahgj8 Use code FAI26EARLYBIRD1 to receive 50% off your ticket through August 17.

Registration for Food. Ag. Ideas 2026 is officially open! Join farmers, founders, brands, researchers, investors, and industry leaders on October 27 for a full day of thought-provoking conversations, inspiring speakers, and meaningful connections. This year's theme, The Minnesota Model, explores how Minnesota's unique food and agriculture ecosystem, built on cooperative economics, land stewardship, and interconnected food system infrastructure, is creating a more resilient future, and what the rest of the country can learn from it. This year’s event features: 🌾 An optional behind-the-scenes Minnesota State Fair tour on October 26 🎤 Keynotes and panels with leaders shaping the future of food and agriculture 🤝 Interactive networking opportunities 🥂 A joint happy hour with attendees from the Reuters Events - Transform Food Conference Ready to be part of the conversation? Register today and use code FAI26EARLYBIRD1 to receive 50% off your ticket for a limited time. 🔗 Register here: https://lnkd.in/ge2Ahgj8 #FoodAgIdeas #MinnesotaFood #Agriculture #FoodInnovation #Entrepreneurship

Yesterday we brought together most of our 21 board members (including 8 brand new members!) for our annual retreat. We spent the day on the things that don't typically make it onto a board agenda: a grounding exercise to start, Bernstein cards that sparked conversations about what values matters most right now, and small groups getting to know one another before diving into committee work. We came in with a simple intention: get clear and connected as an organization. Based on our fist-to-five at the end of the day, we did exactly that! Four years in and we know what makes Naturally MN work. It's the people in the room: the connectors, collaborators, and leaders. Meet our 2026-2027 Naturally Minnesota Board: Andrew Huth, Misen Luu, Berit Morse, Jennifer Alexander, Volkan Kahveci, Kyle Peters, Tsubasa Tanaka, Anna Braun, John Castillo, Leah Thiele, Ephi Eyal, Angela Dee ,Bryan Kreske, Armetha Pihlstrom, Nekima Levy Armstrong, Adrienne Pooley, Molly Clark, Kate LaBrosse, TJ Varecka,Kassendra Galindo, and Allison Hohn. Here's to the year ahead!

Looking to connect, learn, and get inspired? We’ve got three great opportunities coming up! 📍 June 25 — Solidify Manufacturing Tour Get a behind-the-scenes look at Minnesota food and beverage packaging manufacturing. 💻 June 30 — Breaking Into K-12 Learn how food brands can successfully navigate school meal programs with insights from Minneapolis Public Schools. 🌟 July 21 — WILD! A Women's Evening with Females in Food A unique evening of movement, reflection, and meaningful connection designed for women across Minnesota’s food and agriculture ecosystem. Don't miss your chance to connect with fellow food and agriculture professionals this summer. Registration is open for all three events. Learn more and save your spot: https://lnkd.in/gtGNH-wb

This summer, Females in Food is joining forces with Naturally MN to bring WILD to Minneapolis—an immersive evening designed around movement, reflection, connection, and community. Set along the riverfront at Graco Park, WILD combines music, non-alcoholic craft beverages, guided movement led by Emily DeLay of All Joy Fitness, a live DJ set from Effy Kawira, and thoughtfully designed experiences by Anna Braun with Firefly Connects that create space for authentic connection. This event is open to all, but space is limited. 🎟️ $55 for Females in Food and Naturally Minnesota members 🎟️ $75 for non-members Join us for an evening designed to leave you feeling energized, grounded, and inspired. 📍 Graco Park | Minneapolis 📅 July 21st, 5:30pm - 8:30 pm 🔗 Register: https://lnkd.in/eVGzHGmj #FemalesInFood #NaturallyMinnesota #WILD #WomenInBusiness #Community #Leadership #Minnesota Angela Dodd —Allison Hohn

What a night at Naturally Rising Pitch Slam 2026 🌟 Thank you to everyone who joined us to support emerging food and beverage founders, discover incredible local brands, and celebrate innovation in Minnesota’s CPG community. The energy in the room was unmatched! A huge congratulations to this year’s winners: 🥇 1st Place — Farmented Foods (Vanessa Williamson) 🥈 2nd Place — Hoyo, SBC (Mariam Mohamed) 🥉 3rd Place & Audience Choice— BlueHorn Tea (Ayub (Yubi) Hassan) 🌱 Minnesota Department of Agriculture Ready to Grow Award — Lovejoy's Bloody Mary Mix (Charles Lovejoy) We’re so grateful to our founders, judges, partners, sponsors, and attendees for making this event such a success. We can’t wait to see what’s next for these incredible entrepreneurs!

The faces behind the decisions, the feedback, and the future of this year’s founders. These are the leaders, investors, and innovators who will be in the room for Pitch Slam on May 7th—ready to hear bold ideas and back what’s next. Andrea Furber, Head of Marketing of Back to Nature Foods Nathan Swanson, Vice President of Loft Growth Partners Ebony Wyatt, VP of Sales Strategy and Strategic Initiatives of General Mills Ryan Rogers, Director of Business Development of OMG, Inc-Sales and Marketing Megan Stevens, Category Growth Manager of Coborn's, Inc. Simon Solis-Cohen, Founder of Huxley, 2025 Naturally Rising National Champion Whether you’re pitching, networking, or just want to be inspired, this is a room you want to be in. 📅 May 7 🔗 Register now — https://lnkd.in/d68_RGdj

We’ve got a LOT going on right now 👀 TODAY: Pop-up Happy Hour with PURIS 🍸 1 week out: * Cracking the Retail Code — virtual lunch & learn for founders 💻
 * Pitch Slam (flash sale happening NOW ⚡) Use code Flash2026 for 50% off tickets through Saturday 1 month out: Founders Forum 🚀 Your next big connection is in this lineup, don’t sit these out! You can register for any of these events at the events page on our website here!: https://lnkd.in/gtGNH-wb!

Thank you to all who came to our Resource Roundup today! It was so great seeing founders and resource partners come together in one space. Huge thanks to our host, Northside Economic Opportunity Network (NEON) and our sponsor, Alias Advising! Missed it? Stay tuned—more to come 👀