May 16, 2016
![Meet 5 Whole Foods Local Producer Loan recipients Meet 5 Whole Foods Local Producer Loan recipients](https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/blt09e5e63517a16184/bltb5247b8279c71371/64ff2198bcecfd029c066e2c/Escoe.jpg?width=700&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale)
The vegan broth company has used its LPLP loan to boost its capacity and presence in Whole Foods stores by increasing staff, as well as expanding its infrastructure and marketing and sampling efforts. Chef Craig King, founder and president, said the loan has been extra wind for the company’s sails, and the broth is now in several Boulder locations.
The Oregon-based organic blueberry farm is also on its second loan through the LPLP. The first was used to buy a refrigerated delivery truck, used to deliver blueberries to the Portland market. Now needing to upgrade its packing line because of that rapid expansion, Escoe Farms (which sells in Whole Foods under the Hood River Blueberry brand) used the second loan for new equipment to boost efficiency both in the field and in the packing house. The company is now in nearly all Whole Foods Market regions in the U.S. and Canada.
One of the most recent recipients of a Local Producer Loan Program loan, the Navajo Bee Project has been donating honeybee hives to Navajo communities near the Four Corners that are still living with the consequences of 80 years of uranium mining. Founder Joseph Chinnock said the support from Whole Foods Market has helped on several levels. “They gave us a low-interest loan which allows us to create design, packaging and quality control to harvest the honey and wax. More importantly, we can guarantee our Navajo beekeeping friends that we can sell all the honey and wax they harvest,” he said. The Navajo Bee Project is now selling honey in select Whole Foods locations in the Rocky Mountain region.
The Boulder-based company that makes sports and energy drinks from beets and greens used its LPLP loan for to expand its supply chain. “The Whole Foods’ Local Producer Loan Program allowed us to rev up production and have additional inventory to support all their stores across the country,” said cofounder William Leslie IV, who said after this expansion, the company’s revenue in one month exceeded all its revenue for the last three years combined.
The nutraceuticals manufacturer is now on its second loan through the LPLP. Since first partnering with Whole Foods Market, Maine Medicinals, which specializes in anthoimmune organic elderberry syrup, has added more than 20 acres to its (primarily elderberry) orchard, significantly expanded its manufacturing capacity and extended distribution to the Mid-Atlantic and South regions. “The partnership was immensely valuable in the early stages of our launch—not only in financing improvements to our farm, but in opening the door to distribution within our home region (North Atlantic) and also the Northeast region,” said Director of Operations Geoffrey Johnston. “We feel that the LPLP has been a win-win partnership, and one that provided tremendous value to our brand, not only in terms of distribution opportunity, but also as it relates to sharing our story and our values, which is critically valuable in today’s market.”
The nutraceuticals manufacturer is now on its second loan through the LPLP. Since first partnering with Whole Foods Market, Maine Medicinals, which specializes in anthoimmune organic elderberry syrup, has added more than 20 acres to its (primarily elderberry) orchard, significantly expanded its manufacturing capacity and extended distribution to the Mid-Atlantic and South regions. “The partnership was immensely valuable in the early stages of our launch—not only in financing improvements to our farm, but in opening the door to distribution within our home region (North Atlantic) and also the Northeast region,” said Director of Operations Geoffrey Johnston. “We feel that the LPLP has been a win-win partnership, and one that provided tremendous value to our brand, not only in terms of distribution opportunity, but also as it relates to sharing our story and our values, which is critically valuable in today’s market.”
For most, if not all, companies that have participated in it, Whole Foods’ Local Producer Loan Program provides a jump-start to growth and retail success like no other. The program has turned small-town companies into regional or national brands time and again. We checked in with some companies that have received loans through the program over the last year to talk about what it has meant for their brand and their company’s trajectory.
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