GENESIS
continued from page 1
Under the Juice Hazard Analysis
and Critical Control Point Law, all
"very" small businesses must comply
with the new anti bacterial require
ments by January 2004 unless they
sell directly to end users.
"We feel we do (sell directly to cus
tomers) because we manage and
stock every store shelf," Sepp said.
"It's just that we are using popular av
enues that include other products."
Until early September, Genesis' staff
thought it had several months to find a
solution to its problem. But because
the company distributes more than
350,000 units of juice per year — rang
ing from pint to half gallon sizes —
and it grossed more than $500,000 in
one year, it's currently too successful to
be considered a "very small" business.
"We don't want to operate illegal
ly," Sepp said. "But this kind of sword
hanging over our heads has affected
the company morale."
Genesis Juice's process involves
washing hand-picked fruits and veg
etables, pressing them gendy to pre
serve live enzymes and vitamins and
bottling and distributing the juice to
more than 50 locations in Lane Coun
ty and Portland.
Although the process currendy does
not meet government standards, state
agencies that enforce the federal law
have yet to receive standard guidelines,
Sepp said.
The company's reasons for remaining
raw stem from the goal to get the most
out of the processed fruit Sepp said the
cheapest and most common process re
quired by the FDA is "flash pasteuriza
tion," which involves briefly flowing the
juice over a heated surface to kill viruses
like E. coli. Despite the short interval of
160-degree heat exposure; the process
kills all natural enzymes and many nu
r
trients inherent in the fruit.
Sepp said the new legislation, which
resulted in 2001, stemmed from an E.
coli outbreak in 1996 when some chil
dren and senior citizens fell ill after
drinking contaminated Odwalla fruit
juices.
Odwalla had used "windfallen" ap
ples that fell on cow manure-covered
fields and inadvertently spread the bac
teria because it didn't pasteurize its
juices at the time, Sepp said.
~Ihat was the straw that broke the
camel's back," Sepp said. "We had a
few copy-cat situations reported, but
we tested eadi inquiry and got noth
ing, which means it wasn't our juice
that made those people ill."
George Brown — owner of Kiva, a
health-food store and Genesis Juice
distributor located at 125 W. 11th
Ave. — said the closure of Genesis
would create more business for
Odwalla and mark a sad day for in
dependent juice companies.
"Basically, if it happens, Genesis will
be gone; and Odwalla will rule because
it's owned by a huge company like
Coca-Cola," he said. "And that would
be tragic because (Genesis) is kind of
an institution in Eugene"
Owned by its employees, Genesis
Juice is one of only a handful of co
ops that remain since a statewide co
op boom more than two decades
ago, Sepp said.
"We could probably take out a
loan and buy basic pasteurizing
equipment, but we've always been
about fresh, raw juice," she said.
Kathee Lavine, owner of Holy Cow
Vegetarian Foods, located at 2260 Au
gusta St., said Genesis Juice sets a
great example of success for strug
gling co-ops in Oregon.
"Genesis is the only raw juice com
pany that packages in glass for recycling
purposes and operates as one of the last
co-ops in the state," she said. "They re
ally are unique in more ways than one"
lavine said the FDA's legislation guide
Senior Andrew
McLaughlin grabs a
Genesis Juice at the
Holy Cow Cafe before
class on Friday.
Lauren Wimer
Photographer
lines seem unnecessary when it comes to
Genesis Juice's healthy reputation.
"(The FDA) is using a mallet when
they should be using a fine tooth
comb," she said. "If they shut down
Genesis, it would be a tragic loss."
Despite concern among retailers,
Sepp said she is optimistic because
the company is working with a
lawyer to find a more direct way to
sell to customers and to solidify its
stance for federal review next year.
"We need to find some common
ground on the regulation, and I think
we will, "she said.
For locations of Genesis Juice dis
tributors in Eugene, visit
www.efh.org/~genesis/.
Contact the
business/science/technology reporter
at caronalarab@dailyemerald.com.
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