St. Cloud, Sauk Rapids farmers markets win grant funding for improvements

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16-04-2025

Several St. Cloud-area farmers markets received funding boosts from new grant awards.
Both the St. Cloud Area Farmers Market and Sauk Rapids Market received funding, as well as the nearby Popple Creek Farmers Market and Paynesville Farmers Market.
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Sun Prairie, Wisconsin-based Compeer Financial announced its Fund for Rural America awards Wednesday, which included $28,000 for farmers markets in Minnesota.
Both the Sauk Rapids and St. Cloud markets received $1,000 each and both plan to use it for promotional materials like signage around town, Karen Schieler, Compeer Financial's manager of corporate giving, said. The St. Cloud market will also put funding toward vendor tracking and reimbursement software and more service information at their booth, including information about EBT and market tokens.
Nearby Paynesville also gained $1,000 to be put toward banners, a community catalog and radio ads, Schieler said, as well as safety equipment like cones and blockades.
Popple Creek in Mayhew Lake Township in Benton County received $500 to help run its farmers market for the first time this year. The market will be held at the Popple Creek Wedding & Events venue, with one scheduled per month from June through October.
Compeer Financial, a member-owned farm credit cooperative, created the Fund for Rural America in 2018 to support initiatives like rural development, agriculture education and community enrichment.
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It also has a large focus on supporting local food systems, Schieler said, which is a major motivator behind the grant funding for farmers markets.
"A farmers market has become so much more than a place just to feel good, it's a gathering place where people can get together and visit and really just build that sense of community," she said. "It's a multifaceted approach where we're helping our clients and helping agriculture."
Many other Minnesota farmers markets also received funding, including those in Mankato, Eagan, Duluth and Winona.
Compeer Financial's Fund for Rural America also awarded grants to markets in Illinois and Wisconsin for a total of $86,697 across all three states.
Many farmers markets can also help address food deserts and address important community needs, Schieler said, especially in more rural places like Popple Creek or near Paynesville.
"Farmers markets are kind of trendy right now, but it's so important to support our local farmers and have that sense of community," she said. "And how cool is that to go to a farmers market and talk to the person who grew the food that you're about to eat?"
The farmers market season is fast approaching. The St. Cloud Area Farmers Market will return for its opening day May 3 and is scheduled for 8 a.m. to noon on Saturdays. The Sauk Rapids Farmers Market will open May 15 and take place 3 to 6 p.m. on Thursdays.
Teagan King covers business and development for the St. Cloud Times. She can be reached at [e-mail].
This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: St. Cloud, Sauk Rapids farmers markets get funds ahead of May opening