Friday, July 2, 2021
CapitalPress.com 9
River: ‘It was pretty shocking to see what was proposed down there’
Continued from Page 1
Out of 886 segments, 752
are identified as “streams,”
rather than rivers. Another 33
are identified as “gulches,”
one “draw” and 17 were
“unnamed tributaries.”
Geissler said he visited
several of the streams earlier
this year along the Nestucca,
North Umpqua and Applegate
rivers, spanning the north-
ern Oregon coast south to the
Rogue Valley.
Photos taken at Southern
Oregon’s Bear Gulch in May
show Geissler straddling a
dry channel, virtually indistin-
guishable from the surround-
ing landscape.
“It was pretty shocking to
see what was proposed down
there,” Geissler said. “Part of
it is a lack of analysis.”
Geissler’s research and
observations were the basis for
comments submitted by the
AFRC on the River Democ-
racy Act, which received a
public hearing on June 23 in
the Senate Energy and Natural
Resources Committee.
The bill would roughly
triple the number of wild
and scenic rivers across
Oregon to protect fish and
wildlife, water quality and
outdoor recreation values.
It also increases wild and
scenic river corridors from
a quarter-mile to a half-mile
on both sides, which adds up
to approximately 3 million
acres of protected land — an
area approximately the size of
Connecticut.
The concern, Geissler said,
is whether the designation will
make it harder for land manag-
ers to do forest thinning proj-
ects designed to reduce the
size and severity of wildfires.
“My assumption is these
half-mile corridors will be
no-touch buffers,” he said.
AFRC President Travis
Joseph said the group does not
oppose the Wild and Scenic
River Act, created in 1968 to
preserve rivers with “outstand-
ing natural, cultural and recre-
ational values.” However, he
said the River Democracy Act
violates the spirit of the law.
Catastrophic wildfires, ero-
sion and sedimentation pose
the greatest threats to water-
sheds and rivers, Joseph said.
Wyden, who is spearhead-
ing work on the bill, pushed
back against that notion.
The bill requires the Forest
Service and Bureau of Land
Management to establish
wildfire plans and cooperative
agreements with states and
local governments to allow
forest thinning within riparian
areas that haven’t been prior-
itized until now, Wyden said.
In addition, Wyden said
the River Democracy Act
allows ephemeral and inter-
mittent streams to be included
in the national Wild and Sce-
nic River system.
“These are some of the
most important tributaries
of larger, more iconic sys-
tems like the Columbia, Wil-
lamette and Rogue rivers,”
Wyden said in a statement,
adding that 1.7 million Orego-
nians receive drinking water
Pickle: ‘The farmers have absolutely amazed me’
Continued from Page 1
GETTING YOUR RECIPE
TO MARKET
From ‘kiddie pool into deep
water’
Scaling up
In the “Getting Your Recipe to
Market” class, co-run by Portland
Community College’s Small Busi-
ness Development Center and Oregon
State University’s Food Innovation
Center, Walton learned about product
development, food science, packag-
ing, distribution and marketing.
“It was all new to me,” said Walton.
Sometimes, a new product begins
with a startup. Other times, a food
company simply adds a new product
to its lineup. Occasionally, farmers
take a product to market themselves.
The best way to get started, accord-
ing to experts, is to “test the waters.”
“I think a great place to start out
and learn is through farmers markets,”
said Mike Seely, a Willamette Valley
mint grower who sells value-added
products such as mint patties and teas
through thousands of national retail
stores. “That’s where we got started.
You learn what works and what
doesn’t, what people like and don’t.”
Erick Garman, trade development
manager at the Oregon Department of
Agriculture, said as farmers and food
companies scale up, it’s important to
avoid common pitfalls.
Garman and his colleague, Lau-
ren Gwin, associate director of OSU’s
Center for Small Farms and Commu-
nity Food Systems, advise producers
to:
• Do market research.
• Know each retailer’s mission.
• Get to the decision-maker as soon
as possible.
• Be able to explain their product
in detail.
• Understand their category and
competition.
• Make sure they’re in compli-
ance with food safety and labeling
requirements.
• Have a clear sense of production
costs and markups.
• Have a well-organized invoicing
system.
• Be prepared to invest in new
equipment and infrastructure.
Gwin advises producers to keep
some of their business in direct-to-
consumer and foodservice.
“It diversifies your risk,” she said.
Lynne Barra, owner of Paradigm
Foodworks Inc., a food manufacturer,
said she’s seen many farms and food
businesses fail because they weren’t
prepared.
“If you go from the kiddie pool into
the deep water, you gotta have deep
pockets,” she said.
In search of the perfect
cucumber
The farm
With the new business started, it
was pickle time.
First, Walton would need cucum-
bers — and a lot of them. But where
to find them?
In her class, Walton asked Sarah
Masoni, a leader in OSU’s Food Inno-
vation Center, if she knew any grow-
ers. Masoni suggested Bob Egger,
co-owner of Delta Farms, a division
of Sauvie Island’s famous Pumpkin
Patch, and Anthony Fazio, owner of
Fazio Farms in Portland.
Walton met the farmers and decided
to buy cucumbers from both, along
with dill and other produce for pickling
such as green beans.
“Word-of-mouth” recommenda-
tions are key, so industry experts rec-
ommend farmers introduce themselves
to many processors, manufacturers,
distributors and retailers.
Working with farms proved to be a
steep learning curve for Walton.
“I learned to expect the unex-
pected,” she said.
Her first year, Walton ordered
thousands of pounds of green beans.
She was surprised to find some were
wonky shapes that couldn’t fit inside
pickling jars.
“I didn’t even think about green
beans not being straight,” she said.
She learned in the future to order
10% extra.
Working with the farms, Walton
said, was also a joy.
“The farmers have absolutely
The next “Getting Your Recipe to
Market” class at Portland Commu-
nity College is Sept. 28 to Dec. 14.
Information: https://bit.ly/3y2BEKv
Sierra Dawn McClain/Capital Press
Employees package newly made marionberry jam at Paradigm Food-
works.
amazed me,” she
said. “They work their
buns off.”
Egger, of The
Pumpkin Patch, said
he sells about half his
produce in the farm’s
Jill
own market and half
Beaman
wholesale. His No. 1
customer is Albert-
sons grocery stores.
Egger said when
Walton approached
him looking for a sup-
plier, he was grate-
ful for the oppor-
tunity. But pickle
Bob
production, he said,
Egger
is challenging.
A cucumber des-
tined for the pickle
market must be hand-
picked at precisely the
right size.
Hand picking is
hard labor, said Egger.
Erick
He said he pays his
Garman
employees $16 per
hour “to hand harvest
tiny little pickles.”
“How long can hand harvest-
ing pickles go on?” said Egger. “Peo-
ple don’t realize how expensive and
labor-intensive this crop is. Pick-
les are about the hardest thing to do
wholesale.”
Where the ingredients go
The processor
Now that Walton had the ingredi-
ents, it was time to make pickles. The
problem: Her kitchen couldn’t pro-
cess thousands of pounds of cucum-
bers, nor was it licensed. She needed to
find a contract packer, also known as
a co-packer — a food manufacturing
company.
Food startups and farmers often
begin by working with co-packers, and
if the startup grows into a major food
brand, its owners may invest in build-
ing processing and manufacturing
plants.
Typically, one more step comes
before the co-packer: the processor. A
processor prepares raw ingredients for
manufacturing by blending, grinding,
freezing, roasting, pureeing or peeling.
A co-packer then takes the pro-
cessed ingredients and uses them in
recipes to make products.
Between each facility, a sequence
occurs: load, ship, receive. This may
happen under the umbrella of one com-
pany, or each hauler and contractor
may be separate.
Three Little Figs
Manufacturers and co-packers
Walton’s first co-packer was
Dundee Fruit Co. in McMinnville, Ore.
After harvest, about 25 Dundee Fruit
Co. employees would pack Walton’s
pickles — up to 3,000 jars per day.
“It was really cool,” said Walton.
When ownership changed, Walton
shifted to a smaller Portland co-packer
called Three Little Figs.
The company produces artisan
jams, many using a fig base, under its
Three Little Figs brand name, and does
co-packing for other companies on the
side, a common setup. Liz Cowan, the
owner, worked as a fashion stylist for
15 years before opening the company
to pursue her “first love” — food.
Oregon and Washington combined
have more than 100 co-packing opera-
tions, according to ODA.
“It’s a fascinating line of work,”
said Lynne Barra, owner of Paradigm
Foodworks Inc., a co-packer and man-
ufacturer in Lake Oswego, Ore.
Barra, formerly a math teacher, got
into the food world when dabbling with
chocolate-making. She has this sign
hanging in her office: “Forget love! I’d
rather fall in chocolate.”
Today, about 25% of her production
is proprietary and 75% is co-packing.
She works directly with some farmers,
but mostly buys ingredients through
processing plants.
According to Jill Beaman, a Port-
land-based business adviser to food
entrepreneurs, some co-packers source
ingredients for a food company, while
others expect the company to find its
own ingredients.
How a co-packer gets paid also var-
ies. Some co-packers buy a recipe or
inventory outright, while others charge
for services.
Stored away
The forwarding warehouse
Most co-packers don’t have suf-
ficient warehouses or coolers. That
means once a product is made, it’s
out the door and on to a forwarding
warehouse.
“Farmers and food companies
need to have a forwarding warehouse
strategy set up,” said John Henry
Wells, founding director of OSU’s
Food Innovation Center. “When the
co-packer calls and says your product
is done, that’s it. When it’s ready, it’s
ready.”
The forwarding warehouse may
be a third party or within a distribu-
tion center.
A little like Hollywood
The broker
This is where a broker, an optional
role, is introduced.
“The broker is the agent,” said
Wells of the Food Innovation Center.
“It’s a little like Hollywood, the con-
cept of a movie agent getting gigs for
an actor.”
The broker’s role is to, as the
name implies, broker a deal between
the food company and retailer. On
average, brokers take a 5% to 7%
commission.
“If you’re not great at selling, you
need somebody to pitch you,” said
Seely, the mint grower.
Beaman, the adviser, encourages
startups and farmers early on to be
their own brokers. It becomes worth-
while to secure a broker when expand-
ing into broader markets.
Seely, the mint grower, said he
thinks it’s wise to have product in at
least 100 stores before securing a bro-
ker because brokers aren’t cheap. One,
he said, asked him for a $4,000-per-
month minimum fee.
“I politely declined,” he said.
Inside the warehouse
The distributor
Walton’s pickles were now ready
for distribution. Walton had set up a
relationship in advance with KeHE, a
wholesale food distributor.
Some major retailers run their own
distribution centers, while others con-
tract with a third party. According
to Garman of ODA, small and inde-
pendent retailers occasionally accept
delivery directly from a producer.
Across the industry, there isn’t
agreement about whether a producer
should first approach a distributor or
retailer to pitch a product.
“It’s a chicken and the egg thing,”
said Seely, the grower. “Stores don’t
want you unless you have a distribu-
tor, and a distributor doesn’t want you
unless you have stores. It’s tough to
get started. But once you do, the ball
really gets rolling.”
Beaman, the adviser, said she
thinks the retailer is usually the best
first point of contact.
“I think it helps if you have a
retailer asking for you,” she said.
However, Beaman said, produc-
ers often jump into major distribution
chains before they’re ready.
“You get flattered by a distribu-
tor or grocery store wooing you,” she
said.
Gwin, of the Center for Small
Farms and Community Food Sys-
tems, encourages growers to focus on
regional, independent grocery stores.
Experts say some national distribu-
tors are notorious for hidden fees and
confounding contracts.
“You’ve got really good distribu-
tors and brokers out there that want
you to succeed. And then you’ve got
really bad ones,” said one farmer, who
spoke on condition of anonymity.
Supply chains are becoming more
consolidated. Some growers now
work through cooperatives and food
hubs. Others have taken various sup-
ply chain roles upon themselves.
The Seely family, for example,
created their own line of mint can-
dies. They got licensed to do process-
ing themselves, but they outsource
for photography, graphic design and
packaging.
Walton, the pickle maker, said she
avoided distribution-related head-
aches by staying regional, in chains
such as Market of Choice. As she has
moved toward retirement — Walton
is now 70 — she has scaled back and
now only supplies one chain, New
Seasons Markets in Portland.
Duker’s Dills go to market
The retailer
Spring 2021, Walton got the call
from a New Seasons buyer asking for
pickles again.
It was an easy yes. But when Wal-
ton first started in retail, she had many
factors to consider. What was the
competition like? Who was the tar-
get consumer? What product catego-
ries were oversaturated? What was the
ideal jar size?
According to Beaman, the adviser,
one of the most common mistakes
producers make is choosing the wrong
container. If the jar is too tall for the
main shelf, it will go on the top rack,
where shoppers won’t see it.
Traditionally, many chain stores
have also charged “slotting fees” — a
base fee a food company must pay for
just the shelf space a product sits on.
One farmer who did not wish to be
identified said a small chain store once
asked him for $10,000 in slotting fees.
But slotting fees are disappearing
in many markets.
“Slotting fees are a little bit out of
vogue right now,” said Wells, of the
Food Innovation Center.
After the pickles’ long journey to
market, Walton had to face the final,
and most important, test. Would any-
one buy her pickles?
Walton ran in-store demos, retail-
ers shared marketing responsibilities
— and the product line was a hit. A
decade later, Walton’s pickles have
been featured in publications and
reviews statewide.
“Who knew?” said Walton. “It’s
been quite an experience.”
from public systems that rely
at least in part on intermit-
tent, ephemeral or headwater
streams.
Steve Pedery, conservation
director for the environmental
group Oregon Wild, said there
is nothing in law that prevents
an intermittent stream from
qualifying for protection.
“To people who manage
rivers, and are working on
things like restoring salmon
or protecting drinking water,
they recognize that you have
to start with the headwa-
ters,” Pedery said. “You can’t
just focus on the big river
downstream.”
Rules: No
longer any
capacity limits
on riding in
vehicles
Continued from Page 1
employer-provided vans
and buses.
The state set aside $30
million in federal corona-
virus aid to support agri-
cultural workers, including
$16 million in direct com-
pensation for farms under
the Food Security and
Farmworker Safety Pro-
gram to help pay for com-
plying with the emergency
rule.
Nonetheless, the Ore-
gon Farm Bureau peti-
tioned in January to mod-
ify the employer housing
rule, arguing it was expen-
sive and displaced work-
ers due to reduced housing
capacity — placing them
at greater risk by push-
ing them into unregulated
environments.
An amended housing
rule was adopted April 30
by Oregon OSHA.
Under the rule, farms
that use air purifiers in
bedrooms are granted a
bit more latitude on hous-
ing density. Beds must still
be spaced 6 feet apart, but
that distance can be mea-
sured from the center of the
bed, as opposed to the bed
frame.
Without an air purifier,
beds must be 6 feet apart
from the frame, and rooms
must provide at least 100
square feet of space per
person.
The prohibition on
bunk beds remains in
place, unless the people are
related or have previously
lived together before in the
same household.
Along with the hous-
ing rule, Oregon OSHA
adopted a comprehensive
COVID-19 workplace rule
that applies to all job sites.
That rule eliminated the
requirement for extra porta-
ble toilets, and lowered the
frequency for cleaning and
sanitation.
There are also no longer
any capacity limits on rid-
ing in vehicles.
While Brown’s deci-
sion to rescind most restric-
tions aims to fully reopen
the state’s economy, Wood
said the risk of contracting
COVID-19 is still present,
hence the need for contin-
ued workplace restrictions.
Wood said the rules are
temporary, and the agency
is having “regular conver-
sations” about how and
when to phase them out
entirely.
He expects the rules to
remain in place most of this
growing season.
Samantha Bayer, pub-
lic policy counsel for the
Oregon Farm Bureau,
said growers are encour-
aged to see the state fully
reopen businesses, but feel
the workplace restrictions
should be lifted as well.
“We want to see a full
rollback of all COVID-19
regulations on June 30,”
Bayer said. “That includes
the housing rules.”
Sanitation requirements,
in particular, should have
been dropped a long time
ago, Bayer said.
“The CDC has made it
abundantly clear that sur-
face contact is not, and has
not, been a major trans-
mitter of COVID-19,” she
said. “At a minimum, those
definitely need to go away.”