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About Baker City herald. (Baker City, Or.) 1990-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 24, 2020)
B Thursday, September 24, 2020 The Observer & Baker City Herald Small-business & Ag HAPPENINGS Photo from Facebook Dennis Falk, owner of Falk Mini Mart in Union, posted a sign on his business Sept. 15 stating the store would not require customers to wear a mask. He took down the Tuesday, Sept. 22, after the Oregon Occupations Health and Safety Administration received a com- plaint about the signed and warned Falk or displaying it. Union mini mart rejects mask ordinance EO Media Group UNION — Falk’s Mini Mart in Union posted a sign Sept. 15 stating the store will not enforce mask mandates. The two-page sign stayed up for about a week before someone reported it to Oregon’s Occupa- tional Health and Safety Administration. Dennis Falk, the store’s owner, said the state agency told him to take down the sign or face a fine. “I guess there is no being a free American anymore,” Falk said. The sign in the store’s front window said: “As of 9/15/20, the day the mask request was to end ‘but’ (Gov.) Kate Brown extended it to 11/3/20. So masks are still required until then. We are asking you to be free Americans! Make your own educated decision on if you need a mask or not. We will not force you to put one on. It is not our place to go against your freedom as Americans!!!” Falk said he put up the sign because he was tired of the mask mandate and how political everything with COVID-19 had become. The store also has political stickers on its door in support of President Donald Trump’s reelection and recalling Brown. Falk took the sign down Tuesday, Sept 22. There is a page regarding the face cover- ing mandate at the entrance on one of the drink coolers in the store. Island City Walmart pulls back on COVID-19 measures ISLAND CITY — The Walmart in Island City has pulled back its COVID-19 restric- tions. The shopping center at 11619 Island Ave. reopened its second entrance and removed one-way aisles in the store. At the start of the pandemic the store closed its home and pharmacy entrance and initiated one way passages with directional stickers on the floor. The store announced the changes Monday, Sept. 21, on its Facebook page. The Walmart store still is requiring cus- tomers to wear masks. Cattle producers looking at $2.8 billion in CFAP assistance WASHINGTON — Cattle producers are expected to receive $2.8 billion in additional funding announced last week through USDA’s Coronavirus Food Assistance Program. That would put cattle producers’ share at 20% of the up to $14 billion in additional funding for agricultural producers, according to USDA’s cost-benefit analysis of CFAP 2. “We’re thrilled that more assistance is going to be made available for our cattle producers,” Danielle Beck, National Cattle- men’s Beef Association executive director of government affairs, said. Payments will be $55 a head and based See Briefs / Page 2B Photo by Sabrina Thompson/EO Media Group Ashlynn Lillywhite, 19, measures the drive-thru window Tuesday, Sept. 22, at 1609 Adams Ave., La Grande, for her new business, Soda Blitz. She is remodeling the space and plans to open in October. Young entrepreneur to open soda shop Ashlynn Lillywhite, 19, is opening Soda Blitz in October By Sabrina Thompson EO Media Group LA GRANDE — La Grande is about to get a fizzy blitz. Ashlynn Lillywhite is opening Soda Blitz, a gourmet soda shop, at 1609 Adams Ave. in down- town La Grande. Lillywhite is 19 and moved from Utah in July to the seat of Union County to run her own business with the help of her parents. She plans to open the store around the second week of October. Lillywhite had the idea to See Soda / Page 2B Photo by Sabrina Thompson/EO Media Group Soda Blitz, a new gourmet soda shop, is coming to La Grande at 1609 Adams Ave. Owner Ash- lynn Lillywhite, 19, moved to La Grande from Utah to open the business. Marketing association feeling optimistic about hard-hit sheep industry By Brad Carlson Capital Press BOISE — Lamb prices jumped 40% in the six weeks ended Sept. 15, catching the atten- tion of Rocky Mountain Sheep Marketing Association General Manager Stan Boyd. “This has been a really abnormal year,” the Eagle, Idaho-based Boyd said. “In my 44 years, I’ve never seen a year like this.” COVID-19 affected the market substan- tially. Shutdowns of restaurants and cruise lines initially eliminated more than half the market for U.S. lamb meat. Closure of Mountain States Rosen’s processing plant in Greeley, Colorado, reduced capacity. Earlier, drought in Australia and New Zealand diminished lamb supply. And trade issues with China dragged on the wool market, which is not a segment for Rocky Mountain but is traditionally respon- sible for 20-30% of producer income. Boyd said a 100-pound feeder lamb sold for $1.40 per pound in mid-September com- pared to $1 in the first week of August. “All of a sudden, the industry has confi- dence and is optimistic about the future,” he said. Upcoming openings of lamb-processing plants in Brush, Colorado, and San Angelo, Texas, should ease processing backlogs and improve competition, Boyd said. “We have seen an increase in demand for lamb meat, primarily in the restaurant trade,” said Boyd, who led the Idaho Wool Growers Association from 1978 to 2016. Re- tail demand, though not enough to make up for lost restaurant sales, has been strong. He owns a southeast Boise restaurant and lounge that he said was closed for four weeks and then “semi-successful” during a two-week stint offering take-out food. “Now, being at 50% occupancy, we are paying the bills.” The lamb supply chain is starting to par- tially level out as restaurants regain some indoor-dining revenue, Boyd said. Caleb Pirc, a Meridian, Idaho, producer and IWGA government affairs manager, said he’s optimistic about the market, which has been in a “reset” that could lead to explo- ration of new opportunities and, ultimately, growth. Rocky Mountain sells lamb meat and breed- ing stock to buyers mainly in the western and central U.S. It successfully marketed 47,955 head for nearly $7.6 million in fiscal 2018 and 49,789 head for nearly $8.3 million last year, an annual report said. The fiscal year ends Oct. 31. September and October are high- volume traditionally. “For the majority of lambs, we are optimis- tic because of increased packing capacity,” Boyd said. The 85-member cooperative dates from 1975. It was started by Boyd’s father, Tom, See Sheep / Page 2B
