Minnesota Farmer Aims to Provide Hope and Inspiration to Beginning Farmers

This Friday meet Naima Dhore, owner of Naima’s Farm LLC in Dalbo, Minnesota. While her journey into farming was a long one, Naima’s love for the outdoors and family inspired her to chase her dream. She credits cherished childhood memories as a driving force for recognizing the value of local food production. Naima now grows a variety of crops with the help of her husband, Fagas.

Working Toward Her Dream

Naima moved from North Carolina to Minnesota over 20 years ago. Her desire to grow food in Minnesota evolved from growing microgreens in her apartment into growing in community gardens. 

She later participated in an incubator farm with access to land and resources where she learned about Minnesota agriculture. This opportunity helped her realize that she wanted a slower lifestyle. Naima moved her family from the city out to rural Minnesota to give her children hands-on experience with growing food. 

“Growing up we had a garden with fruits and vegetables,” she said. “We would go to the market every day to get fresh food, and we always cooked together as a family and shared meals as a community.” These are memories she wants to create with her own family.

Naima worked patiently toward her dream, reaching out to USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) to help make her goal of farm ownership a reality. Because of her persistence, Naima and Fagas eventually found their farm and purchased it with help from a farm ownership loan. These loans offer essential financial support to farmers and ranchers aiming to purchase, develop, or expand their agricultural operations.

“Overall, it was really encouraging to work with staff that were willing to learn and go through the ups and downs of government programming with us,” Naima said. “It just took a little bit of patience and hard work.”

Growing the Farm and Local Food System

The inaugural 2024 season of Naima’s Farm LLC provided a harvest of millet and various vegetables. Naima’s production goes to the Twin Cities (Minneapolis and St. Paul) in Minnesota where she works with food hubs and community-based food shelves. 

“I just never really took farming seriously until I enrolled in an incubator farm and received basic farm training. Now here I am, a fully functional farm,” she said. Naima and Fagas also plan to incorporate fruit trees, more grain, and flowers into their operation in the coming years. 

In addition to farming her own land, Naima runs a community urban farm in the Twin Cities where she supports elders who have assigned plots. She also continues to support and encourage beginning farmers through groups like the Emerging Farmers Working Group.

“We need the skills and knowledge of beginning farmers to make local food systems successful and sustainable,” she said.

By sharing her story, Naima is providing hope to other beginning farmers because they can now see their dream of farming is possible. “I just really want this to be a community where we all learn from each other, it doesn’t matter your background,” Naima said.

For those who are going through the process of applying for an FSA farm loan, Naima says, “If you really want this, you must put in the work.” She also encourages farmers to reach out and ask for help, and to talk to other farmers who have gone through the process and build relationships with your local FSA staff.