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Jennie’s Gems, October 2011

10/24/2011 Leave a Comment

Jennie Dickinson photoBy Jennie Dickinson, Manager, Port of Columbia.

A frequent question I hear from local residents is, “Will Blue Mountain Station hurt Dayton’s Main Street businesses?”

Answer: Absolutely not!  In fact, one of the goals of Blue Mountain Station is to help downtown Dayton.

Here’s how:

  • Dayton’s downtown is zoned central commercial.  Like most downtowns, the zoning is purposefully written to encourage retail and service businesses to locate there.  The primary purpose of Blue Mountain Station’s tenants will be wholesale specialty food processing.  Dayton’s downtown buildings aren’t made to accommodate food processing.  Food processors need floor drains, loading docks, coolers, and food-grade wall coverings.  Downtown is not meant for, zoned for, nor has the buildings for this type of business use.  So if we want new manufacturing jobs in the community, appropriately zoned land with the necessary infrastructure is needed.  That is what Blue Mountain Station will provide.
  • The dollars residents spend in local retail and service businesses tend to circulate over and over again within the community. Wholesale products that are shipped and sold outside of the community, like those that will be produced at Blue Mountain Station, bring NEW dollars from outside the community into Dayton. These dollars can then be spent at downtown businesses.
  • In addition to wholesale production, Blue Mountain Station will also offer tours of the processing facilities, culinary events, and on-site sales of specialty foods products as a way to attract new tourists to Dayton.  Besides helping the processing businesses, the goal for increasing tourism traffic is for those tourists to spend money in Dayton’s hotels, retail stores, and restaurants, which will help downtown businesses.

It would be contrary to the Port’s mission to undertake activities that hurt our downtown retail sector.  Dayton’s beautiful, vibrant Main Street is one of the primary attractions to businesses interested in locating here. We’re all in this together!

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Find Me a Co-Packer!

10/18/2011 Leave a Comment

 

Gary White Photo“Find me a co-packer!” Wow, how many times have I heard that? More than I can remember, to answer my own question. I keep meeting food companies who are interested in participating in the Blue Mountain Station opportunity, but through a co-packer. There just seems to be a flat out huge demand for co-packers located in Blue Mountain Station. So, for my own edification and those of you who might need it, I scratched around a bit to gain a better understanding of the co-packer world.

Why Use a Co-Packer?

  • Money – theirs, not yours: The co-packer covers the major costs of processing your food product such as facilities, equipment and employees.
  • Paperwork – Food processing, especially organic, involves the government and that involves paperwork in the form of a myriad of licenses and permits, rules and regulations from all levels…..local, state and federal. Let the co-packer work with the government and pay the fees.
  • Time – especially if you are a small company or just getting started. Processing food takes time. Maybe yours is better spent formulating, marketing and selling.

What To Look For In A Co-Packer

  • Find someone that is manufacturing a product similar to yours. They need to have the appropriate equipment and expertise. A good understanding of your category can be very helpful.
  • Sometimes a qualified processor with excess capacity will welcome the opportunity to keep the equipment humming and the cash flow positive by manufacturing your product.
  • Occasionally you can find a company who has a seasonal operation, just the opposite of yours, that would welcome the off-season business. Unfortunately, these guys are usually located in Argentina.
  • Once in awhile, someone with processing experience will be willing to invest in new equipment to accommodate your needs. This usually involves a long term commitment and belief in the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus.

Now What?

Okay, you’ve found the right company – they have the building, equipment, employees, expertise, desire – they are pleasant and appear to be breathing. Before “pulling the trigger” (a term probably better used if the relationship goes sour) there are a few things to keep in mind:

  • Have them sign a confidentiality agreement before you disclose any proprietary information (i.e. recipes, marketing plans, etc.)
  • Get references and check them out. The best ones are other companies they are co-packing for. If they refuse to provide this information, drop them like a hot tamale!
  • Get financials. If they go out of business, so do you!
  • Make sure they have all the proper permits and licenses to operate (if you are organic, they better have their organic certification, if you are gluten free they better have…..you get it).

I realize this is a very brief analysis but, this is a very brief eNewsletter. Come November 13 – 15 I will be attending PLMA’s 2011 Private Label Trade Show in Chicago. If you will be attending and would like to learn more about the Blue Mountain Station opportunity, please contact me at 509-539-3575 or gary@pchelle.com. Hopefully, the fine folks at PLMA can find me a co-packer (or two or three)!

Filed Under: Blog, Newsletters, Sidetracks

Blue Mountain Station – A Brief History, Pt. 1

10/15/2011 Leave a Comment

 

Dennis Miller photo

By Dennis Miller, President/Creative Director at Artmil.

For you regular followers of the development of Blue Mountain Station the following information may be a repetition, but I wanted to start with an overview before I get more into some things that might sound rather random if I just started telling you about them. So bear with me. Thanks.

Columbia County’s Blue Mountain Station Project has made great strides in the last few years. We now have the land and infrastructure necessary for natural and organic processors to locate here. Located in Eastern Washington,  the heart of wine country, and just thirty miles from Walla Walla, Dayton is a rustic town with a historic downtown and many lovely Victorian homes and bed & breakfasts. Dayton, known for excellent food and fine dining, has long been the stop of tourists and outdoor enthusiasts.

Dayton has a history of food processing, starting back in 1880 when Jacob Weinhard came to Dayton and established the Jacob Weinhard Brewery. Food processing giants, Green Giant and then Seneca, were in Dayton until 2005 when they closed the Dayton plant. The Eastern Washington area continues be a major agricultural area with the ability to grow a vast array of crops. Blue Mountain Station hopes to capitalize on these assets. Attracting natural and organic food processors who will add value to crops grown in the area will stimulate the rural economy, and the natural and organic food processors will benefit from the local agriculture and be able to build their food processing businesses in a pleasant rural setting.

Recently, Blue Mountain Station joined Washington Tilth Producers. One of Blue Mountain Station’s goals is to assist Washington farmers by connecting them with processors, thus helping them add value to their farm produce. As these farmers understand how Blue Mountain Station can benefit them, we will be building relationships with these Washington farmers and processors. We believe the Seattle, Portland and Spokane markets provide great growth potential for the local foods market. We are developing Blue Mountain Station to help farmers and processors in Washington take full advantage of this opportunity.

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