Farmer’s Markets vendors respond to Community Action Duluth’s statements
DULUTH, Min. – A group of vendors from Lincoln Park and Hillside Farmer’s Markets are responding to recently release of information from Community Action Duluth (CAD).
CAD’s board of directors released a six page document trying to clear-up what they called “misinterpretations, inaccuracies, and plainly false claims” that have been reported and talked about in recent days.
The statement from the vendors was sent by “SolFed Farm” but signed by “A collective group of vendors from the Lincoln Park and Central Hillside Farmers Markets”.
The statement said on September 24. 2025 they sent a letter to asking to meet with the board looking to learn how CAD planed to catch up on outstanding payments to all vendors, asking for communication on payment plans, and asking for a board liaison to communicate with vendors due to a breakdown of communication.
The vendors say the letter went unanswered.
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The statement said they sent a second letter on October 23, 2025. They vendors say the next day, on October 24, Board Chair Shawn Pearson responded saying, “The Board has received the documents and will address them soon.” The vendors said that was the only communication they have directly received as of November 21.
The vendors letter then continued to say, “We learned the November farmers markets were cancelled without much explanation beyond a Facebook post. Yesterday’s press release from CAD was the first time we learned that the winter markets were cancelled entirely. Although it is true that CAD reduces outdoor farmers market events in the winter season for obvious weather reasons, they instead have shifted to be indoor winter markets for the past two seasons… Vendors and customers alike were relying on promises made of winter markets being available and this cancelation was made without consultation or explanation to the market community.”
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The vendors have asked to meet with CAD leadership as a group. They said, “CAD has simply refused to offer a group meeting at this time, instead offering individual meetings as the only immediate option with a possibility of a future group meeting – but no timeline of when that could potentially happen.”
The vendors also responded to the CAD claims saying Executive Director Classie Dudley has been unfairly targeted based on her race, gender and age. The vendors wrote, “While that may or may not be true, linking all existing and real accountability issues to Executive Director Dudley’s race, gender, and age doesn’t erase the professional accountability that our group of vendors have been asking for. Many vendors have never met Ms. Dudley and never knew who the Executive Director was. We have never seen her at the Farmers Markets. We are only focused on accountability and transparency, period.”
They continued to say claims in the CAD Board of Director letter are not true. The vendors letter states, “Many of the vendors in our collective group have not been paid up until August 25th as
CAD has claimed in yesterday’s press release. As of this morning, a few vendors verified they received a check in the mail this week that brings them up to August 25th, but that is the minority. Many are still waiting for invoices and reimbursements for most of August, all of September and all of October. Some are still waiting for payments owed to them prior to August.”
The letter ends with, “We will continue to request and be willing to meet with the CAD board and leadership to discuss as a group our concerns. We look forward to seeing how CAD plans to take responsibility and provide transparency because actions speak louder than words.”
FULL NEWS RELEASE:
For Immediate Release:
11/21/25
We are a collective group of vendors who have attended the Lincoln Park and Hillside Farmer’s Markets this year, with many of us participating for 3+ years. We chose these markets because of CAD’s mission, the Seeds of Success Program, and our shared values of being service-minded folks who want to increase healthy food access in the areas of our community that need it most. We are glad to read in CAD’s press release yesterday that they are committed to transparency and open dialogue grounded in facts.
We would like to clear up some misinformation as well and get to the facts. Since our first phone calls to CAD leadership starting last year to the growing number of inquiries over the market season this year, transparency and open communication is exactly what we have been requesting, yet we have not received it. After our inquiries to leadership went unanswered, we wrote letters to the Board of Directors.
The first letter was sent September 24th asking for the following:
1. An opportunity to meet with the board to discuss the impact of the situation, including the impact on the vendors, the customers, and the markets as a whole;
2. Learn about how CAD plans to catch up on outstanding payments to all vendors;
3. Asking for CAD to communicate a plan to vendors for the timeliness of future payments;
4. An assurance that our efforts to communicate with CAD will not continue to be ignored by appointing a board liaison that vendors can communicate with since there is a breakdown of communication.
Unfortunately, the first letter to the board of directors went unanswered and was not even acknowledged. We sent a second letter on October 23rd extending another opportunity to communicate with us and asking for the same opportunities to meet and communicate. This time both letters were sent via certified mail as well to ensure they were received. As of today we have yet to receive a formal response from the CAD Board beyond a “The Board has received the documents and will address them soon” response from Board Chair Shawn Pearson on October 24th.
Soon after those letters were sent, we learned the November farmers markets were cancelled without much explanation beyond a Facebook post. Yesterday’s press release from CAD was the first time we learned that the winter markets were cancelled entirely. Although it is true that CAD reduces outdoor farmers market events in the winter season for obvious weather reasons, they instead have shifted to be indoor winter markets for the past two seasons. This is the only market in the area where people can use their tokens like Essentia Bucks or the Produce Prescription Program before they expire. Vendors and customers alike were relying on promises made of winter markets being available and this cancelation was made without consultation or explanation to the market community. The decision to cancel the winter markets and how it was communicated is beyond disappointing and has compromised our integrity and reliability in the Farmers Market community.
The new Seeds of Success Program Manager reached out to several of the vendors offering an opportunity to meet and talk about our concerns. We responded and included the Executive Director and Board of Directors asking for a group meeting for efficiency and transparency. CAD has simply refused to offer a group meeting at this time, instead offering individual meetings as the only immediate option with a possibility of a future group meeting – but no timeline of when that could potentially happen. We are still wanting and willing to meet as a group to discuss concerns and find a resolution.
CAD is claiming that Executive Director Dudley is facing scrutiny above and beyond standards due to her race, age, and gender. While that may or may not be true, linking all existing and real accountability issues to Executive Director Dudley’s race, gender, and age doesn’t erase the professional accountability that our group of vendors have been asking for. Many vendors have never met Ms. Dudley and never knew who the Executive Director was. We have never seen her at the Farmers Markets.
We are only focused on accountability and transparency, period.
CAD’s claim detracts from the very real fact that members of marginalized communities that CAD claims to care for have not been paid fully. Many of our farmers market vendors are EBT participants and are among the low-income folks they aim to serve. We are small businesses, family farms, and individuals who live in the community and are deeply committed to serving our community. We are committed to CAD’s mission and want to see the organization and the Seeds of Success Program thrive.
The CAD Board’s lack of action or communication has forced a growing number of vendors to take further action, which we have reluctantly wanted to do because we hold these markets and programs near and dear to our hearts. The markets grew to an amazing, supportive community gathering and we are saddened by the sudden cancellation of the winter markets, lack of communication, and lack of accountability from CAD leadership and the Board.
Many of the vendors in our collective group have not been paid up until August 25th as CAD has claimed in yesterday’s press release. As of this morning, a few vendors verified they received a check in the mail this week that brings them up to August 25th, but that is the minority. Many are still waiting for invoices and reimbursements for most of August, all of September and all of October. Some are still waiting for payments owed to them prior to August. We are struggling to understand how CAD’s Board of Directors just learned in October of outstanding payments to vendors, because we sent communication prior to October. In CAD Board meeting minutes, financial reports are reviewed at each regular board meeting. The delay or lack of payments to vendors was happening long before October, and in fact happened immediately at the start of the market season by starting one month behind in reimbursements.
We would like CAD to explain how the interruption in SNAP benefits in October of this year has anything to do with getting reimbursed for anything prior to October, or how this impacts the invoices we have submitted that have nothing to do with SNAP reimbursements, such as the purchases that are from grants and other state and federal funding.
For some funding CAD must first show proof that they have paid vendors and then request to be reimbursed themselves. For other programs like EBT, reimbursements are generally processed and distributed within 3 days. Other programs are regional and grant supported, while still others are government dollars and some of the reimbursements may take 30 or more days for CAD to receive them. The funding is complex, but managing the funding and distributing the funds in a timely manner is CAD’s responsibility.
We are struggling to understand why we haven’t received communication long ago and are understandably frustrated with the amount of time and energy it has taken to have CAD’s attention to respond to our concerns. We are committed to the idea that ruptures can be repaired. Since there are several CAD Board vacancies, we recommend filling some seats with a Farmers Market vendor and a market participant.
We will continue to request and be willing to meet with the CAD board and leadership to discuss as a group our concerns. We look forward to seeing how CAD plans to take responsibility and provide transparency because actions speak louder than words.
-A collective group of vendors from the Lincoln Park and Central Hillside Farmers Markets
