Milaca farmer harvesting special pumpkins for the seeds

Rachel Sannerud is trying something new this year on her farm.

Pumpkins certainly aren’t new, but she’s not harvesting the typical big, orange porch pumpkin. She’s interested in the seeds inside, called pepitas.

"I think pepitas are popular, we see them in our granolas, in our salads, on top of soups this time of year," Sannerud said. "They are tasty and are healthy."

With the help of a grant from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, Sannerud planted the pumpkins in a greenhouse in late April, then in the ground in early June.

She harvested all the pumpkins in late September.

"I was really impressed with how many pumpkins there are," she said.

She will then take them to a commercial kitchen to process the seeds.

"There I will be cutting them in half, scooping seeds out, dehydrating them, and once they are dehydrated, they will go into packaging and I will explore the marketing side of the crop," she shares.

Typically grown in the pacific northwest, Sannerud is using the two-year grant to study the process and hopes the yeild will be successful.

"Because if there is a local market for it, we should be growing it locally," she said.

The hope is to have all of the pepitas harvested, processed and out to consumers by the end of the month.

Sannerud also operates a flower business called Pluck Flower Farm from her farm near Milaca.