Fresha is a new company that has already made a big impact in regard to carrots in Minnesota.

The company got its start when farmer Dan Schaefer saw an opportunity to grow carrots in west central Minnesota.

“His feeling was that he was going to need to find different crops, diversity with some higher-value crops, and he started looking into different avenues to figure out what would make the most sense,” said Matthew Wulf, sales manager for the Morris, MN-based company. “He had an opportunity to start growing carrots for some processors about six years ago. It started on just a few acres, and he found he was able to grow really good carrots, they tasted great — they were very sweet carrots — and he could grow really nice yields.”

Wulf explained that the northern climate’s long summer days and cool nights are ideal for growing carrots, which get even sweeter in the fall as frost hits their tops and pulls the sugar down to the roots.

Once Schaefer had his idea to grow carrots in Minnesota, he set out on putting a team together that would focus on the fresh carrot market.

“As we made connections in the industry, we recognized there was a bit of a void in the Midwest when it came to carrots,” Wulf said. “We found a number of customers interested in sourcing local/Midwest grown carrots.”

The company had its first growing season in 2019. In addition to its delicious carrots, Fresha has been a big benefit to its local partners because of the reduction in the cost of freight and the abundant water supply in the North Star State.

“Our water is very stable in Minnesota,” Wulf said. “It goes up and it goes down, but you go back many, many years and it ends up averaging out. So, we have this stable resource that seems like it’s depleting in other parts of the country.”

For Fresha’s first season, it planned on focusing on the foodservice market, but by the end of that initial year, the company’s leaders pivoted to focus more on retail.

“What we found when we got into it, is that retailers were very interested in having a local option,” Wulf said. “And when I say local, that applies to a lot of the upper Midwest.”

Another of Fresha’s goals is to create opportunities for family-owned farms, as a high percentage of the company’s owners are growers and others want to become growers as the company thrives.

“The reason most of those growers had an interest was because they were looking for long-term sustainability and growth for their farms,” Wulf said. “Each and every one of them have children that are anywhere from 10 years old up to 22 years old, and it has already provided an opportunity for one of the owners, who’s a grower, to bring his son in. That’s definitely been a big driver for it as well.”

Fresha also is dedicated to innovation, as its team is working on “Minnie” carrots with a unique flavor and profile. What started as a product that didn’t have a home, has turned into a new product offering.

“We had some ‘mini’ carrots that didn’t fit in a standard pack so we’d snack on them in the office or take them home,” Wulf said. “Soon they became my kids’ favorite carrots because they had a sweet flavor and were the perfect snacking size. We’re trying to create a bit of a niche product that has a specific flavor profile and size, catered towards impulse buying as a healthy snack.”

Fresha also plans on introducing a fresh veggie blend with potatoes, carrots, celery and onions for soups, roasts and grilling.

“They’re all packed together in a vacuum-sealed container,” Wulf said. “The uniqueness of it is that there’s a proprietary process that gives it an extended shelf life. Most of the time, with this blend, you might be able to get 14 days of shelf life, whereas with our process, you can get about 30 days from pack date.”

That kind of thinking and creativity has Fresha positioned for long-term success.

Photo: Dan Schaefer, Fresha founder and CEO, and his son, Emery.