Renewing the Countryside

Story Clearinghouse

Kay’s Naturals

By

Powerhouse Snacks When a local pretzel manufacturer went bankrupt, Tom Condon, a Clara City farmer and entrepreneur who owned the plant’s building, worried about the town of 1500 losing critical manufacturing jobs. Tom was a client of local businessman, Massoud Kazemzadeh, and sought his help in saving the plant, knowing Massoud had product-development expertise and […]

Building Community on a Strong Foundation

By

Building Community on a Strong Foundation Look up the word “union” in the dictionary, and you will find the definition of a small town at its best: “n. something formed by a coalition of independent individuals for some common purpose.” Union residents pride themselves on being “the biggest volunteer town in eastern Oregon.” One community […]

Nesenkeag Cooperative Farm

By

Fresh, Local and Organic Food For All Litchfield, New Hampshire On one 65 acre farm in Litchfield, New Hampshire, some of the richest and most fertile land in the United States supports the growth of diversified niche food crops — seventy in all, but especially the eagerly awaited pea tendrils and salad greens — that […]

Central Minnesota Ethanol Cooperative

By

Corn Power! Central Minnesota Ethanol Cooperative (CMEC) of Little Falls, Minnesota is a new generation cooperative formed specifically for the purpose of producing fuel grade ethanol and dried distillers drains with solubles from the processing of locally produced corn. The plant produces 20 milliongallons per year of 100% ethanol and 60,000 tons of DDGS, a […]