Minnesota Now

If you stayed up for the men’s NCAA championship Monday night, chances are today you’re either celebrating or crumpling up your bracket and throwing it in the trash. While March Madness has officially come to a close, here at home the Twins are shaking off a strange home opener, and the Timberwolves are eyeing the playoffs.

Minnesota Now sports contributors Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson joined Kelly Gordon to share the top local sports headlines.

A dairy company in west-central Minnesota has plans to expand one of its farms to become the state's largest dairy operation. It is raising concern from some local residents and environmental advocates.

Riverview LLP, which runs West River Dairy near Morris says it's trying to increase capacity to meet growing demand across the country and world. Meanwhile, opponents say the move will hurt smaller dairy farms and the environment.

The proposal is under review by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.

Michael Johnson, a news editor for Agweek who has been following the story, joined MPR News host Kelly Gordon to talk about what risks the expansion could have to the environment and what locals are saying.

Mobile home park prices in the state are at risk of rising. What lawmakers say will keep those prices low.

Plus, a decades-old food pantry abruptly shut its doors. Why its more than 80 locations are now closed.

It's been months since the U.S. blockaded Cuba's oil supply to pressure the government to fall. It's caused power outages at hospitals there. We heard from a Minnesotan who has been there to help.

And a high schooler is the first in the state to be recognized with a language certificate in Ojibwe. He shared his educational journey with us.

Plus, there's just one finalist for a James Beard award in Minnesota. He's a sushi chef. We spoke to him about his craft.

The Minnesota Music Minute was Ludwig van Beethoven's “Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor”, performed by the Minnesota Orchestra. "Headed West" by Old Oaks was the Song of the Day.

Starting at the beginning of 2026, the U.S. government effectively cut Cuba off from receiving oil shipments in an effort to force a regime change in the country. The blockade has led to frequent nationwide blackouts and the lack of gasoline is now debilitating hospitals, the food supply and public transportation.

Teddie Potter is a former nursing professor with the University of Minnesota who now she spends her time leading a health nonprofit called “Medical Education Cooperation with Cuba.” She’s been spending a lot of time in Cuba and shared more about what she’s seen as well as her work there on Minnesota Now.

Out of five nominees for this year’s James Beard Award for Best Chef: Midwest, three specialize in sushi and Japanese cuisine. Among them is Shigeyuki Furukawa, the only Minnesota chef named a finalist this year in any category. This is the second year in a row he’s been nominated. Karyn Tomlinson of Myriel in St. Paul won the award in 2025.

Furukawa co-owns Kado no Mise, which means “corner restaurant” in Japanese. Wednesdays through Sundays, he and his team serve a tasting menu of delicate, traditional sushi. On Tuesdays, they offer a different concept: ten courses drawn from a centuries-old cooking tradition called “kaiseki.” He also has a Japanese whiskey bar tucked in the same building.

Chef Furukawa joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about the nomination and his approach to food.

In Minnesota, high school students can earn college credit for proficiency in a language besides English. The Minnesota Bilingual Seals Program has been around since 2014 to help recognize multilingualism as an asset.

The program recognizes 32 languages and this year for the very first time, a student was awarded a World Language Proficiency Certificate for Ojibwe. Tecumseh Fahrlander is a senior at Hinckley-Finlayson High School and is a member of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe.

He spoke with Minnesota Now host Nina Moini about the experience alongside Annie Huberty, the director of American Indian education at the Minnesota Department of Education.

For many people, mobile home parks are an affordable place to raise a family or retire. But manufactured housing is also big business in Minnesota for out-of-state buyers.

Cait Kelley shared her reporting on a bill before the Minnesota Legislature that aims to keep parks budget-friendly.

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday morning in a landmark case about birthright citizenship. It stems from an executive order from President Trump that aims to end the constitutional protection. A constitutional law expert joined Minnesota Now to explain what happened in the hearing.

Starting Wednesday, thousands of Minnesotans may no longer be eligible for SNAP food benefits. We talked about who's impacted and what resources are available.

Plus, there are not one but two storms in the forecast, with the potential to bring snow. MPR Chief Meteorologist Paul Huttner shared details.

We learned about a local nonprofit publishing the work of incarcerated writers.

And a new archive is digitizing thousands of songs to preserve Minnesota's rich music history.

The Minnesota Music Minute was “Sometimes It Snows in April” by Prince. “What a Fool Believes” by the Doobie Brothers was the Song of the Day.

Thousands of Minnesotans could lose access to federal food benefits beginning Wednesday, April 1, due to changes to work rules for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

These changes came as part of HR 1, the massive reconciliation bill signed into law in July 2025.

Barb Dahl, health and human services director for Scott County, and Rachel Holmes, director of advocacy and community engagement with The Food Group, laid out what people should know in an interview with Minnesota Now host Nina Moini.

Thousands of musicians make up Minnesota’s deep and wide-ranging music scene: from polka halls to hip-hop studios, basement punk shows to internationally-known classical performers.

An ambitious new project is trying to capture all of it in one place.

The Diverse Emerging Music Organization, or DEMO, has relied on a small staff and many volunteers for years to meet one goal: to collect, digitize and preserve all music released by Minnesota artists.

The archive launched Wednesday and DEMO is throwing a launch party Thursday night to celebrate. DEMO Executive Director Mitch Thompson joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about it.