Region Nine Responds to COVID-19

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As always, Region Nine Development Commission keeps the health and safety of our communities, staff, and families as a top priority.
 
Beginning Monday, March 16, until further notice, our offices will be closed to the public as a precaution to help slow the spread of COVID-19. As we continue to monitor the coronavirus situation closely, we will follow the Minnesota Department of Health, CDC, and World Health Organization for updates and guidance.
 
The daily operations at Region Nine will continue. Please note:
 
  • Our team is here to serve you and continue our work. Staff are working remotely using email, telephone, and other forms of communications. Direct phone calls will be routed to staff cell phones.
  • Staff have the option to take time off if they choose to.
  • Remote web conferencing and conference calls are encouraged for meetings.
  • Public meetings, including quarterly commission meetings, will be postponed. Region Nine will look for ways to continue to engage the commission and public during this time via online videos, presentations, etc.
  • Any daily office functions that require on-site staffing will continue to be performed.
 
Thank you for your understanding and continued support of Region Nine. We’ll update you when business returns to normal.  
 
For now, Region Nine is following suggestions from the CDC to protect our staff and visitors from COVID-19:
  • Regular cleaning of office spaces.
  • Access to hand sanitizer, Kleenex, etc.
  • Creating a ‘Handshake-Free Zone’.
  • Ensuring social distancing by following the 6ft rule.
  • Conducting phone or video conferencing for meetings.
  • Encouraging those who are able to telecommute.

Key facts to know about COVID-19 can be found here. For more information on what you can do to prevent the spread of COVID-19 visit the CDC website.

Updated and ongoing information will be shared via our website and social media as it becomes available. Please feel free to reach out to us with questions or concerns. We will get through this challenging time together.
 
Thank you,
 
Your friends at Region Nine Development Commission

Minnesota partners with Germany to better sustainability and use of renewables

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By Ryan Sjoberg

LE SUEUR, Minn. (KEYC) — An exchange program through the University of Minnesota matches cities in Germany and Minnesota to try to find better avenues of sustainability and use of renewable energy.

Tuesday, German project manager Guido Wallraven and local officials toured Hometown BioEnergy just outside of Le Sueur.

Hometown BioEnergy transforms biomass into energy for local cities and a nutritious bio-gas product for farmer’s fields.

Wallraven is fascinated with the model to ensure a decentralized energy supply that includes local farmers.

“This might be a good pilot or model to be transferred throughout the state of Minnesota,” Wallraven explained. “Last week, I was working with our partner city, Morris, in western Minnesota and they are thinking about how they can provide a decentralized energy supply for the city and maybe what you are doing here is a model and pilot for them.”

Wallraven says they are already doing this in Germany successfully, just not on the scale here in Minnesota. Hometown BioEnergy is able to produce four to eight times the energy and bio-gas nutritious material the German plants are.

View the KEYC video.

School board shares info

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Region Nine Development Commission looks for solutions in food and beverage manufacturing capacity challenges

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MANKATO, Minn. (KEYC) – An agriculture group now finds an apparent lack of capacity for growing Minnesota food and beverage manufacturers to expand when they are ready.

That finding from the Agricultural Utilization Research Institute has prompted a new study from the Region Nine Development Commission to understand what the problems are and what can be done to solve them, according to Region Nine Community and Business Development Specialist Shawn Schloesser.

Region Nine said that if these infrastructure needs are not addressed, there is a risk of losing both the economic benefits that they provide and the possibility of attracting new businesses to the state.

“If you have a product, and you want to manufacture 1,000 of them, but the company that will do that for you will only manufacture 10,000, that gap is too hard for you to close, and so we’re looking for manufacturers that are willing to take on various sizes, the right size for your company,” Schloesser said.

Schloesser said Region Nine is hoping to make small adjustments in the state.

“Whether or not there are things that the State Legislature could do, such as adjustments to regulations,” he said.

The organization, along with AURI, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture and FoodOps, are looking at various trends in their survey.

The goal is to support growth in the industry and create a positive economic impact for the state by looking at strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats faced by those in the sector.

“So we’re looking at the licensing portion from the state, the regulations that are in place,” Schloesser said.

Sourcing local ingredients is another trend they are looking at, something Jack Link’s in Mankato tries to do as often as possible, according to Plant Manager Richard Achtziger.

The Mankato location produces roughly 225,000 sticks a week.

As employees work behind the scenes, Achtziger is noticing trends in the industry.

“People are trying to get to the clean label, which is one of the things that we’re doing here as well. As close to pure as you can get,” he said.

Achtziger is also noticing the trend in sourcing local ingredients, something he said there are challenges with.

“It’s not always possible. As I said, it’s a tough market right now, trying to get beef in,” Achtziger said.

The survey is aiming to help mid-sized companies, particularly those with sales from $20,000 to $3 million.

But Region Nine is seeking responses from all state food and beverage manufacturers and hopes to see an increase in employment and income in all sectors tied to the industry.

They also hope manufacturers of all sizes can benefit from the data.

Achtziger said the food and beverage manufacturing industry creates a domino effect impact.

“You know, the cardboard boxes and things like that coming off the forestry industry. You’ve got the meat coming in coming off the agricultural end of it,” he said.

The survey ends on Feb. 5th.

View the KEYC video.

Spotlight Interview with Nicole

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Listen to the KTOE interview.

New Study Explores Minnesota Food & Beverage Manufacturing Capacity

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Region Nine Development Commission, in partnership with the Agricultural Utilization Research Institute, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, and FoodOps, is conducting a survey to identify food and beverage manufacturing trends to support growth in these and related sectors. The goal of the survey is to help create an increased economic impact for the entire state.


The project is in response by the AURI to an apparent lack of capacity or access to affordable, right-sized manufacturing options in Minnesota for growing, ready-to-scale small food and beverage businesses. Failure to address these infrastructure needs places the state at risk of losing not only the economic benefit these businesses provide today such as jobs, revenue, capital, and agricultural product utilization, but also minimizes the economic potential of attracting new food and beverage businesses to the state.
Survey Participants:


The intended audience of this survey are those in the food and beverage manufacturing sectors within the state of Minnesota, regardless of annual sales volume, that is defined by the standard industrial classifications system, Food and Kindred Products used by the United States Department of Labor.


Anticipated Project Benefits to Minnesota:

• Identification of the real and perceived strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats faced by food and beverage manufacturers and related sectors.
• Potential increases in employment and income in all sectors tied to the food and beverage manufacturing sectors, which may result in economic growth for the state.
• Ability to gain resilience in all related sectors by understanding what opportunities and threats exist, how those challenges could be mitigated, and opportunities pursued.
• Identification of opportunities for domestic and international investment benefits in Minnesota by adding the state’s economic growth and resilience.
• Food and beverage manufacturers of all sizes benefit from a study of their environment and new data resources and guides.
• Minnesota will benefit by identifying ways to potentially grow the food and beverage manufacturing sector, which may result in economic growth in multiple related industrial sectors.
• Creation of an assessment report to support the expansion of mid-sized companies with sales from $20,000 to $3 million as well as related industrial sectors.
• Provide assistance and insight to the state legislature in crafting and refining policies which offer the right amount of regulation and support to maintain level opportunities for all.


Access the Survey:

The survey is currently open and will be available to participants until February 5, 2020. To participate in the survey, please visit https://www.rndc.org/food-and-beverage-manufacturing-assessment/

For specific questions regarding the survey or study, please contact Shawn Schloesser at shawn@rndc.org or 507.389.8886.