News » 08.07.2025 - Cut flower farms bloom in Minnesota state budget

 

Minnesota's definition of a farm is changing, thanks in part to a cut flower farmer in Mazeppa. Allie Kuppenbender grows flowers. Lots of them.

As the owner of Bleed Heart Floral Farm in Mazeppa, cut flowers make up her entire family's income. Allie estimates she serves nearly 50 florists a week. Even with the makings of a traditional farm, Bleed Heart Floral wasn't classified as a farm under Minnesota law earlier this year.

"What are we if not a farm? This isn't a hobby," Allie said in April, when the state's definition of agricultural products didn't include floriculture. "It's not a backyard garden. I'm trying to run a business." This excluded her from receiving tax breaks and discounted fees because her land didn't count as a farm.

"The way the statues are written, small-scale farms like mine fall through the cracks," Allie said earlier this year. "I just want to get the benefits that all other farmers get." Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signed the Tax Finance and Policy Bill into law in June, which adds floriculture as an agricultural product. This plants a seed for the future of Allie's land.

 

Source: www.floraldaily.com

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