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Issue #6 • Spring 2007 Editor's Note Features Company Briefs Start-up News Retail & Restaurant People Community Around the State Sustainability About Naturally Boulder News  EDITOR'S NOTE Welcome to the Spring 2007 edition of Naturally Boulder News, reporting business news related to natural and organic products companies in the Boulder region. With the announced merger of Whole Foods and Wild Oats, it's not unusual that Boulder finds itself at the center of much national news, conjecture and speculation. Speaking of which, please share your news with us. Send your news briefs or press releases to news@naturallyboulderproducts.com. Also, mark your calendar for these upcoming events:
Naturally yours, Steve Hoffman, Editor news@naturallyboulderproducts.com back to top FEATURES Retail Ground Shifts in Whole Foods-Wild Oats Merger Boulder found itself at the center of national business news following the announced purchase of Wild Oats Markets by Whole Foods Market of Austin, TX, for $565 million. According to the Boulder County Business Report, Whole Foods is moving ahead with plans to double the size of its Boulder store at the Crossroads Commons shopping center, and Wild Oats' is on schedule to open its Twenty Ninth Street store this spring. Meanwhile, the Federal Trade Commission has requested further information in investigating the proposed merger, a move that is not unusual in larger-scale mergers and acquisitions, say analysts. In response, Whole Foods extended the deadline of its offer to April 24 to accommodate the FTC's request. Also, the Daily Camera reported on February 28 that Wild Oats plans to pay bonuses valued up to $4 million to 318 of its management-level employees to encourage them to stay on for the period of transition. Wild Oats operates 110 natural foods stores in 24 states and Canada. Whole Foods Market has nearly 200 stores in the United States and the United Kingdom. Pet Food Recall Stimulates Demand for Organic Pet Products  In the wake of news that contaminants had been found in pet foods manufactured by Menu Foods Inc. of Ontario, Canada, and sold under a large number of brands in the United States, natural foods retailers are experiencing a surge in demand for natural and organic pet food. The increase follows a product recall in which a number of dogs and cats were killed or sickened as a result of eating the contaminated pet food. At Vitamin Cottage, a sign in the pet products department outlined which brands were recalled, and that no natural and organic brands were involved in the recall. Dry grocery buyer Rick Werner of Wild Oats Markets was quoted in an Associated Press article saying that natural and organic pet foods had been growing at 15 to 25 percent per year prior to the recall. Boulder-based natural pet food manufacturer Pet Promise has been swamped with inquiries, says general manager Julie Mueller. No Pet Promise product was involved in the recall, she assures.Dean Foods Says No to Clones; Asked to Report on Organic Procedures by Social Investor Groups WhiteWave Foods parent company Dean Foods, the nation's largest dairy products company with $10 billion in sales, announced it would refuse milk from cloned cows. Earlier this year, the FDA gave preliminary approval to meat and milk from cloned animals, saying there is virtually no difference between clones and conventional cows. Through WhiteWave Foods, Dean owns Broomfield-based Horizon Organic Dairy. In related news, in March, a group of socially concerned investors for the second year in a row have filed a shareholder proposal asking Horizon's parent company Dean Foods to review its policies and procedures related to its organic production and report to shareholders on how it is responding to recent consumer and media criticism. The investor groups include Boston Common Asset Management and the Needmor Fund, according to Natural Newswire. Yet, in March, the Boulder Co-op decided after nearly a year to restock Horizon Organic dairy products in its store. "We feel as a result of our boycott, [Horizon] actually listened," says Tom Morris, a member of the Co-op's management team. For Horizon, it was a matter of educating others how its farms are run, Horizon spokesperson Molly Keveney, told the Daily Camera. Horizon Organic reported that it helped convert 64 dairy farms to organic in 2006, as part of its Horizon Organic Producer Education program. As a result of the program, Horizon says it purchases milk from 363 farms, which range in size from 12 to 1,500 cows, in 20 states. Natural Products Expo Draws 48,000 Industry Members Natural Products Expo West, the world's largest natural and organic products trade show, produced by Boulder-based New Hope Natural Media, saw attendance grow 10% to 48,000 trade visitors to the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, CA. More than 30 local companies exhibited at the Expo, which featured more than 3,000 overall booths. The Daily Camera sent business write Alicia Wallace to cover the Expo and the Boulder companies participating in it in a series of local news articles in mid-March. According to the Daily Camera, Wild Oats Markets buyers did not attend the show in the wake of the recent merger announcement with Whole Foods Market. Bloggers Enthusiastic for Organics and Health According to Umbria Inc., a Boulder-based market research firm, bloggers are enthusiastic about organic and wellness issues. Organic eating habits and health trends discussions in the blogosphere are evenly split between males (50%) and females (50%), even though female bloggers tend to dominate other food-related topics. The groups whose online conversations were of note were Boomer females, Boomer males, as well as Gen X (aged 30-45) females. According to Umbria's research, females are motivated by the desire to make "good" choices, such as feeding their children nutritious organic food or making ethics-based choices. Males are more motivated by health concerns such as lowering cholesterol, losing weight or decreasing risk of cardiovascular disease. www.umbrialistens.com An Opportunity for Sustainable Information Exchange Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper gave opening remarks at the second annual Sustainable Opportunities Summit held in Denver on Feb 28 - March 2. The event was co-sponsored by CORE Colorado and University of Colorado Leeds School of Business Deming Center for Entrepreneurship. Speakers featured included: Bill Reinert, National Manager, Alternative Fuel Vehicles, Toyota; Dawn Rittenhouse, Director of Sustainable Development, DuPont; and Federico Pena, Managing Director, Vestar Capital Partners, former Mayor of Denver, and United States Secretary of Transportation. Other speakers came from companies such as Shell WindEnergy, New Belgium Brewery, Nike and Wild Oats. The event provided a forum for area business and civic leaders to learn and exchange ideas and practices focused on sustainability. Some of the topics covered were clean energy, organic food, greening the transportation sector, alternative fuels, green building, and telling the story of sustainable business practices. The 3-day conference drew more than 300 participants, an increase of 66 percent over last year's first summit. To learn more visit www.corecolorado.org. back to top COMPANY NEWS Avery Brewing Co., of Boulder, and Russian River Brewing Co., of Santa Rosa, California had accidentally both been working on a new Belgian-style beer to be called "Salvation". Instead of suing each other, they are combining recipes and coming out with a brew to be named "Collaboration, not Litigation Ale". The Brewers Association of Boulder says that there are now 26 organic breweries in North America, and that there are 20 more making at least one organic recipe. Association director Paul Gatza says that the sector is growing at double digits, though still a small subset of the craft brewing industry. Boulder-based People Productions is pursuing employee-centric policies such as shift flexibility and paid lunches while maintaining sustainable business growth. The company has grown 50 percent in 2 of the last 3 years, but expects growth this year to be 10-20 percent. Owner Brad Gilbert says that he intends to limit further growth to reasonable levels so that the corporate culture can be maintained. Natural pet products manufacturer Pet Promise has relocated its offices to Boulder from Westminster, CO. The company is now located at 1113 Spruce Street in the Registry building. Pet Promise is a leading supplier of natural and organic pet foods and other pet products. The company uses no animal byproducts or rendered protein or fat in its products. New Hope Natural Media of Boulder is partnering with SPINS, the premier provider of natural products sales data, to provide sales information to retailers. Their first projects will be a "trendspotting" page in the Natural Foods Merchandiser (NFM) published by New Hope that will feature SPINS analysis, as well as data support from SPINS throughout the magazine and expert speakers from SPINS provided for NFM's webinar series. In related news, New Hope's parent company Penton Media, Inc. was recently purchased by Prism Media Holdings, Inc. Prism and Penton are both held by private equity firms MidOcean Partners and Wasserstein & Co. Broomfield-based Gaiam Inc., reports a revenue increase of 54 percent from 2005 to 2006, from $142.5 million to $219.5 million. The growth resulted in an increase of profits from $1.3 million to $5.6 million. In related news Gaiam bought back 2.5 million of its shares from Revolution Living, an investment firm founded by Steve Case of AOL. Revolution had put $20 million dollars in the original deal, but now the two companies feel that they do not have enough synergy to justify the deal.  Horizon Organic of Broomfield announced a new "Standards of Care" policy for its dairy cows. The recommended methods address nutrition, stress management and homeopathic remedies, grazing on organic grass, and year-round outdoor opportunities to exercise and socialize. Horizon Organic donated 100 tons of organic hay to southeast Colorado ranchers whose cattle were hit hard by the January 2007 blizzards. Hay is in very short supply in the area and calving time is at hand. According to the Colorado Cattlemen's Association, somewhere between 8,000 and 15,000 cattle died in the storms.Boulder-based Izze Beverage Co., continues to grow while maintaining its culture after its purchase by PepsiCo, according to general manager Jon Galloway. The company is testing its ability to expand by introducing a new line of low-calorie drinks called IZZEesque. The product has less than one-half (40) of the calories of regular IZZE, and is still made of sparkling water and real fruit juice. It will come in Mandarin, Black Raspberry and Limon flavors. Chello Foods of Lafayette is making all-natural dips, pestos and tampenades that are exclusively for sale at Whole Foods Markets in Colorado, Texas, Louisiana, Kansas and New Mexico. Founder Mallory Kates says that the line is gourmet in the sense that recipes vary according to the availability of fresh ingredients. Doc Popcorn of Boulder makes a healthy alternative product popped in corn oil in ten different flavors. The company now has retail outlets devoted to the snack in Flatirons Crossing and Northfield Stapleton malls, as well as exclusive vendor contracts at the Broomfield Events Center and Folsom Stadium in Boulder. Hain-Celestial Group of Melville, NY, has issued a recall of about 130,000 cans of Earth's Best Organic Apple Peach Barley baby food for possibility of contamination. If you have purchased the product, please look at the code on the lid and determine if it is either PFGJ14NP or PF6J14NP. Boulder-based Celestial Seasonings is a member of the Hain-Celestial Group. FeelingBold of Boulder (www.feelingbold.com) is devoted to creating products that evoke and share positive emotions for women. Their current focus is the Bold Bead bracelet and the "Positivity Ripple Effect" offer which sends a free Bold Bead to a friend for each purchasing customer on the website. Boulder-based Compass Natural LLC, a full service communications, event production and PR firm, with the support of the City of Boulder, Naturally Boulder and the Colorado Department of Agriculture, is establishing trade missions to Europe in 2007 and Tokyo, Japan in Spring 2008. Boulder/Denver area businesses will display their products at Natural & Organic Products Europe in London, England, April 15-16, 2007. Companies participating in the London show include Kroeger Herb Products Co., BTG Enterprises, InnoVision Health Media, and Anna� Geoceuticals, plus, Boulder�s Best Organics and Organic Vintners contributed Boulder products, and the Boulder Convention and Visitors Bureau provided banners. Cooper Tea Company of Louisville and USA Rugby of Boulder negotiated a sponsorship deal for the Bazza High-Energy Tea product line. The drink, which features no synthetic caffeine, will have exclusive access to the energy drink category at all sanctioned events of the growing sport. Aerogrow of Boulder has developed a dirtless, self-watering and self-lighting plant-growing unit that fits on a kitchen countertop. The Aerogarden has already sold more than 100,000 units and company profits should be close to $4.8 million in the next fiscal quarter, according to CEO Michael Bissonnette. Boulder-based Veloce Coffee offers 12 blends of 100% Fair Trade and Certified Organic coffee. Starting in February, 4-5 of these are available in Rocky Mountain region Whole Foods markets. Every store will carry Speranza, a blend designed for the Cure Breast Cancer Foundation, which will get one dollar from every sale. Boulder's Nexus magazine hosted its first Holistic Expo event on February 10-11 at the Millennium Hotel. More than 1000 people attended 25 presentations given by national leaders in health and spirituality. The keynote speech was given by Larry Dossey and was titled "Spirituality, Optimism and the Healing Connection". The TeaSpot of Boulder (www.the-teaspot.com) is introducing its new product TeaMaestro that automatically removes an infuser filled with loose leaves of tea from the water when the steeping cycle is complete. Special settings on the unit distinguish between green, black and herbal tea types. The Boulder Creek Festival, May 26-28 2007, will be one of 19 festivals across the country to host the Organic and Natural Experience (ONE) Tour that introduces more than 17 leading organic and natural brands to attendees of these events. ONE is organized by MusicMatters (www.musicmatters.net), a marketing firm out of Minneapolis that has offices in Boulder. Kabana Skin Care, LLC of Boulder (www.kabanaskincare.com) announced its new Spring Break Sun Safety Kit. The product comes in a travel bag and contains sunscreen, moisturizer, cr�mes, and lipbalm. There is also a 5-step Safety Guide in the packet. Organic Food Brokers (www.organicfoodbrokers.com) of Boulder now has Ruth's Hemp Foods as a new client. Ruth's grew 65% last year and is planning new product launches this year. The brokerage now represents over $120 million in annual client sales. Destiny Dairy in Eaton (www.destinydairy.com) is going organic, completing their two year transition period from conventional. The new Destiny Organics line will include goat-milk, 2% goat-milk, chocolate goat-milk and goat-milk yogurt. HerbalCast (www.HerbalCast.org) is a weekly podcast produced in Boulder with host Keely Cormier that is sponsored by Rocky Mountain Herbals and White Dove Herbals. The program will cover all aspects of the herbalist's craft and will feature experts like John Hay and Linda Whitedove. The marketing and media component of HerbalCast is produced by Room 214, Inc. of Boulder. Mix1 of Boulder (www.mix1life.com) has done very well in market testing the last four months, according to co-founder Greg Stroh, who also was one of the co-founders of Izze. Now the company is ready to go national with the drink, which is designed to be an optimal blend of carbohydrates, proteins and nutrients to provide sustained energy through the day. back to top START-UP NEWS 
Grow Anywhere Air-Foods is a Frederick start-up that is hydroponically raising "micro-greens" to supply the Denver-Boulder restaurant market. These plants are in a stage after sprouting but before "baby-greens" and are perfect for garnishes or little on-plate side salads. Some of the plants involved include mustard greens, lettuce, endive, tatsoi and radish. These are combined with spicier tasting and/or coloring elements like cumin, cilantro, beets, and shiso to make mixes. Founders, and growing equipment tinkerers, Larry Forrest and Mark Haberer intend to take the business model to locations in Las Vegas, San Francisco, Chicago, and New York.Keen Ingredients Inc. (www.keeningredients.com) of Louisville is a new company, started by grain scientist Laurie Scanlin that is devoted to providing basic supplies to the food industry made out of quinoa. Their first two products are a de-bittered quinoa flour and a quinoa germ product that can be substituted for wheat germ. Future products will include oils, malts for wheat-free beer, starches, and protein powders. Boulder-based Twist is a company that makes biodegradable sponges and super durable cleaning towels. This sector is underdeveloped and Twist founder Brian Ross expects opportunities for shelf space in natural products stores across the nation. Clean Conscience, Inc. of Boulder (www.cleanconscience.net) is a new residential cleaning company that uses non-toxic environmentally safe cleaning products and practices. One-time, weekly, bi-weekly and monthly service is available. Boulder, Fort Collins (and Miami) based Tria Events and Marketing is holding a Launching Party on April 14 at the Foundry in Boulder. There will be a fashion show with Colorado University sorority girls as runway talent featuring green looks. The event will be webcast by Green Scene TV (www.greenscenetv.com). Ticket info available at info@triaevents.com. back to top RETAIL & RESTAURANT
PEOPLE Ellen Feeney in January 2007 was promoted to Vice President of Responsible Livelihood at WhiteWave Foods. A Colorado native, Feeney has been leading WhiteWave Foods' Responsible Livelihood programs for the past 18 months. Feeney served in Business for Social Responsibility, People Planet Profit Colorado, and currently serves on the board of Naturally Boulder. She is responsible for all of WhiteWave's sustainability efforts, from paper used to 100% wind power to in-house recycling efforts, and supporting a number of community environmental, food and health-related causes. Victoria Hartman is the new vice president of sales at San Francisco-based LightFull Foods, Inc. Ms. Hartman has worked at the executive level at Charter Baking Company, Rudi's Organic Bakery, Horizon Organic Dairy and Celestial Seasonings in Boulder.  Blaine E. McPeak has been named by Dean Foods as the new president of WhiteWave's Horizon Organic division. McPeak comes from a 13-year tenure at Kellog Company where he was president of the $1 billion annual Wholesome Portable Breakfast and Snacks division. Before that assignment, he was president of Kellog Frozen Foods.Rocky Mountain Institute of Snowmass announced that high-tech industry veteran Michael Potts will head up its 'think and do' tank while co-founder Amory Lovins will become Chairman and Chief scientist. In his new role Lovins will have less direct management responsibility and will be able to focus more on strategic issues, 'thought leadership', and special initiatives. back to top COMMUNITY
AROUND THE STATE
SUSTAINABILITY Boulder-based Eco-Cycle's Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials has a new program to process used cooking oil into biodiesel fuel that can be used to run vehicles that have converted their engines. Vegetable, canola, sesame, sunflower, and olive oils will be accepted free of charge at the Center which is located in Boulder at 5300 Old Pearl Street. The Colorado New Energy Summit held its second annual conference on the future of alternative energy March 24-25. Speakers came from all over the political spectrum, including Colorado governor Bill Ritter and Colorado senators Ken Salazar and Wayne Allard. Among the important facts revealed about Colorado is that this is the 11th windiest state and the sixth sunniest, presenting an opening for a leadership position in the upcoming market for renewables. 
Boulder is home to many of new web-based companies involved in the rapidly expanding market of green fashion. www.econscious.org is a general online shop; www.cocosshoppe.com is an online boutique; www.ebelladesigns.com focuses on accessories and home decorations which support communities in Peru; www.goridenaked.com has surf-inspired street-wear; www.basurabags.com sells handbags made from recycled material found on the streets of Honduras; www.englishretreads.com makes accessories out of recycled inner tubes; www.jessicascottltd.com has organic maternity clothes and baby bedding and www.climbingropebracelets.com has a name that speaks for itself.The University of Colorado at Boulder's Environmental Center held the 2007 Rocky Mountain Sustainability Summit on February 22-23. The keynote speech, titled "The New Security in the 21st Century", was given by former U.S. senator from Colorado Gary Hart. Other featured speakers included Hunter Lovins, David Orr, and Albert Bartlett. A particular focus of this year's event was the sustainability programs of the University and the application of its methods to society at large. Boulder-based Eco-Products Inc. is transforming its warehouse and corporate offices at 3640 Walnut Street into a zero-energy facility. According to Steve Savage, owner of the company, a new 150-panel solar power system will be installed on the roof. Recently, Eco-products has also converted its trucks to biodiesel, employed xeriscaping on its grounds, and given incentives to employees who bicycle to work. Flatirons Habitat for Humanity, which builds low-income housing in the Boulder area, is working on a new green building project that will eventually house nine families. According to Nancy Flynn, marketing director of the Boulder branch of Vitamin Cottage Natural Grocers, the company is matching any private donations made to this project at their store locations. Boulder-based Keymark Enterprises is contributing by increasing onsite efficiency with use of its software that supports computer-aided cuts of construction materials. The Colorado Governor's Office of Energy Management and Conservation has brought forth several new sustainability initiatives, including a plan to triple the number of E85 ethanol pumps in our state. According to Tom Plant, the new director of the Office, progress in this area would be greatly accelerated by the creation of an earmarked fund for supporting renewable energy development. Longmont-based Solar Village Prospect is an energy-efficient development in Longmont's Prospect New Town area. Mark Kostovny, co-founder of the project, says that gas bills have been cut in half by using solar water heating for hot water and radiant heat, and by using efficient windows and thick wall insulation. Boulder-based Brock Publishing Co. is coming out only with an e-version of Green Magazine (www.greenmagonline.com) rather than do a paper version. According to publisher Tom Brock the decision was based on reader feedback about how to make the project completely value aligned. The City of Denver has a broad-based sustainability initiative called Greenprint Denver, www.greenprintdenver.org. Among its accomplishments is conversion of 847 of 2,678 of its vehicles to alternative fuels or gas-electric hybridization. All diesel vehicles in the program use some biodiesel fuel in the mix. Other proposed efforts include tripling tree plantings on city land, cutting landfill mass by one third, and making new official buildings green compliant in their construction. Boulder-based Estey Printing, a privately-owned 53-year-old offset printing company with letterpress roots that can emboss, deboss, die cut and foil stamp, is the first in Boulder to stock recycled paper from San Francisco-based New Leaf Paper. New Leaf donated paper for the programs of Naturally Boulder Day 2006. Estay also offers vegetable- and soy-based inks. It has an assertive recycling program, recycling everything from the obvious to the not so obvious like the silver from film as well as metal plates. For more information visit www.esteyprinting.com. The Boulder County Planning Commission has scheduled public hearings on April 18 and May 16 to review proposals to adopt sustainability provisions that are to be integrated into the Boulder County Comprehensive Plan. This could lead to major changes in land use and building codes, property rights, 'green' design standards, etc. The Boulder County Board of Commissioners will also hold a public hearing on these proposals on April 10. The following Boulder companies won awards at Eco-Cycle's third annual Zero Waste Business Awards: 1) "Going for Zero Waste or Darn Near" - Boulder Outlook Hotel (for small businesses) and Whole Foods (for large businesses); 2) "Outstanding Composting and Recycling Program" - Eco-Products (small) and The Kitchen (large); 3) "Outstanding Recycling Program" - Namaste Solar Electric (small) and Roche Colorado Corp. (large). back to top ABOUT NATURALLY BOULDER NEWS Naturally Boulder News is distributed to Boulder and Colorado-area natural, organic and healthy lifestyles businesses, and other interested individuals. For a free subscription, visit www.naturallyboulderproducts.com. Please share your news with us at news@naturallyboulderproducts.com, and feel free to share this newsletter with your friends and colleagues. For more information on Naturally Boulder's business-promoting activities, visit www.naturallyboulderproducts.com. © 2007, Naturally Boulder Task Force, published by the Naturally Boulder Task Force, an economic development initiative supported by the City of Boulder, CO, with a mission to promote the growth of natural and organic business in the Boulder area. All rights reserved. Editor: Steve Hoffman, Compass Natural LLC, news@naturallyboulderproducts.com Associate Editor: Seleyn DeYarus, Compass Natural LLC, seleyn.deyarus@naturallyboulderproducts.com Contributor: Matthue DeYarus, matthuedeyarus@yahoo.com Design, Web: Heather Morgan, Canvas Interactive, heather@canvasinteract.com Chair: Linnea Simons, Caplan and Earnest, lsimons@celaw.com City: Frances Draper, Boulder Economic Council, frances.draper@boulderchamber.com back to top | |