Today we’d like to introduce you to Tammy Frericks.
Hi Tammy, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
One day, my friend invited me to go strawberry picking. I wasn’t sure what it entailed but decided to go along. We visited a farm in New Munich to pick fresh strawberries directly from the field and buy them. I thought it was a brilliant concept, teaching people where their food comes from. Having worked in retail for most of my life, starting at my uncle’s meat market where my grandpa raised the cattle we butchered, I understood the importance of seeing the full process from farm to table.
Later that day, after picking the strawberries, I called my mom to ask what to do with them. She suggested making jam. I told her I didn’t know how to can, but she offered to come down that weekend to teach me. She brought all the canning supplies—canner, Ball book, pectin, sugar, and more—and together, we made jam. It turned out great!
The year after my mom passed in 2016, my husband Steve and I found a piece of property outside of Albany, MN. While we were with the realtor, looking at the property, the price of the land dropped by $30,000 in just half an hour. I felt like it was a sign from my mom, guiding us. We had just six hours to decide whether to buy it, and the realtor warned that it would sell fast. Despite Steve wanting to think it over, I said, “Sold!” He still thought for a couple hours before agreeing and we bought it.
We tore down the old house and built a new one. In 2018, we planted roots, and by 2019, we were selling strawberries as a U-pick farm. We work hard every day—there’s a lot of hand weeding, and we try to be as sustainable as possible. The kids and I got up every morning at 6 am to go out and weed the strawberries. Our crops are very labor-intensive, and I started out by hand-watering the plants every day after work until 10 pm during our first year. I enrolled in a farm business manager school for specialty crops, and my husband and I attended many strawberry conferences, networking with the best strawberry farmers in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan. It wasn’t about competition; we worked together, supporting one another. Watching people come to the farm to pick strawberries filled my heart, and the farm grew year after year.
Soon, people were coming from all over Minnesota and beyond, and it felt humbling to know this was where I was meant to be. After that first year of selling U-pick and pre-picked strawberries, along with my homemade jam, we decided to involve our children. Each of them took on their own products: Hailey sells honey (Hailey’s Honey), Kallie sells sweet corn (Kallie’s Kernels), and Bryce sells pumpkins (Bryce’s Pumpkins). The kids work hard on their crops and help with the strawberries, and we support each other’s success.
Since planting strawberries in 2019, we’ve expanded to include half an acre of asparagus, two high tunnels—one for pick-your-own raspberries and the other for vegetables—and I can most of what we grow in my canning kitchen. Every year, I think about new ideas for the farm, though time and resources sometimes limit what we can accomplish.
What started as a two-acre U-pick strawberry farm has now grown into a diverse operation with seven acres of strawberries, half an acre of asparagus, a high tunnel of fall raspberries, sweet corn, honey, pumpkins, squash, gourds, homemade strawberry jam, strawberry-rhubarb jam, jalapeño jelly, raspberry jam, pickled asparagus, and dilly green beans. Looking ahead, I plan to open a farm store in 2025, with even more exciting developments in the works for 2026. Stay tuned!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We work hard every day on the farm, tackling plenty of hand weeding and doing our best to be as sustainable as possible. In our first year, I spent hours hand-watering the plants after work until 10 p.m. and also hand-cutting the blossoms to ensure healthy growth. It was incredibly labor-intensive, but it was all part of building something meaningful.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a strawberry farmer, along with growing other specialty crops. My love for farming started early, growing up in the garden with my mom, and now I’m able to do it on a larger scale. I’m passionate about what I do—especially when it comes to teaching others where their food comes from. I’m known for growing the juiciest, plumpest strawberries and preserving them in jars so people can enjoy them all year long.
I strive to do things a little differently because this is my unique journey. Everyone has their own path, their own wants and needs, and this is mine. Above all, I’m incredibly proud of the work my family and I have done and the support I’ve received from my family, friends, and customers along the way, helping me achieve goals.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Nobody ever expected me to become a strawberry farmer. For 20 years, I worked as a pricing coordinator for a grocery store chain, and then as a lunch lady at the local school when I started while my strawberry farm quietly grew in the background.
Contact Info:
