Radish Farm Stop opens in Minneapolis, creating community and boosting farmers' bottom lines

From curly kale to sumac salami, locally raised fruits, vegetables, meat and dairy line the shelves at the new Radish Farm Stop in southwest Minneapolis. Everything is 100% local from over 85 producers.

Founder Lily Gross hopes customers leave with more than just groceries.

"We're building a community around food. Where people are able to connect and get to know one another and celebrate what we have here," said Gross.

A coffee shop with local pastries adds to that feeling, but the sense of connection starts with knowing who grows the food.

Every item at Radish features the name and location of the farm or producer. They are also encouraged to go a step further, providing education on not only how they make their products but why their farms are special, bringing everyone closer together while making life a little easier for farmers.

"Radish is different in that we operate on a consignment-based model. Producers set the price and own the product, and whenever a customer checks out, the producer receives 70% of the sale and the farm staff receives 30% to support operating expenses," Gross said.

The community response has been bigger than expected.

"It's been absolutely incredible. We have found that we did not hire enough staff," Gross said.

That early excitement is exactly what customer Lindsay Wold had hoped for, watching the farm stop come together.

"To have something right next to where I work every single day is huge for me. I'm always looking for fresh organic, free of chemicals, the gluten-free options, dairy-free, just for personal reasons, so this has been amazing," said Lindsey Wold, of Brooklyn Park.

For Gross, the crowds at Radish are only the beginning.

"I would say it's an ambitious goal, but we want to reverse the loss of small farms," Gross said.

Just weeks after opening, there are early signs that it's working.

"We had our first producer payouts last week and it already made me emotional to see what we're able to pay producers at this point. Suddenly, they could be getting an extra $10,000 to $20,000 this year through sales at Radish alone, and that's really incredible to think about," Gross said.

Radish Farm Stop is located at 5357 Penn Avenue South in the Lynnhurst neighborhood. It's open from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. daily except Thursdays, when they are closed. The plan is to eventually extend those hours.