Business
AgLife
B
Thursday, March 3, 2022
The Observer & Baker City Herald
Alex Wittwer/EO Media Group
J.J. Horst, a manager at La Grande Auto Repair, works on a customer’s vehicle at the shop on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022.
Sierra Dawn McClain/Capital Press, File
Grants for improving meat processing facilities in Oregon
from the state’s Department of Agriculture aim to jump-start
investments in the industry.
PILING UP
ODA begins
taking grant
requests
Auto repair shops
are faced with
increased demand,
supply chain woes
Applications to expand, improve
meat processing due March 23
L
By GEORGE PLAVEN
Capital Press
MORE
INFORMATION
SALEM — The
For additional questions or to
Oregon Department of
receive a paper application,
contact ODA Trade
Agriculture is accepting
Development Manager
applications for $2 million
Gary Neuschwander at 503-
in grants to upgrade and
551-1706 or gary.neu-
expand meat processing
schwander@oda.oregon.gov.
facilities.
Funding was provided
by the 2021 Legislature to
jump-start investments while ODA revives the state’s
dormant meat inspection program.
The six-week application period opened Feb. 9, and
closes March 23. Grants are capped at $500,000, and
ODA expects requests will exceed available funds.
ODA Director Alexis Taylor said the COVID-19
pandemic highlighted the need for more options in
meat processing for livestock raised in Oregon.
“These critical resources will expand Oregon’s
regional meat processing capacity and strengthen our
food supply chain from disruptions we saw early on
in the pandemic,” Taylor said. “I am excited to see
the proposals we receive which will support our rural
economies, open new markets for Oregon products
and connect local consumers with local producers.”
The Oregon Meat Processing Infrastructure and
Capacity Building Grant is open to all Oregon meat
processors, including slaughter facilities that fall into
one of three categories:
• Those planning to expand capacity to include
animals raised in Oregon and operate under the State
Meat Inspection Program.
• Those planning to build new plants and facilities
to process animals raised in Oregon and will operate
under the State Meat Inspection Program.
By ALEX WITTWER
EO Media Group
A GRANDE — Vehicles
are piling up, but not on
the freeway.
The number of cars and trucks going
through auto body and repair shops has
been increasing steadily, according to shop
owners. They’ve reported waiting lists
of several months and significant delays
in getting vehicles back on the road. The
delay is in part due to supply chain issues,
they said, along with more locally based
economic problems.
See, Repair/Page B6
Alex Wittwer/EO Media Group
Mechanic Carl Severtsen works on the next car in line at La Grande
Auto Repair on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022.
Alex Wittwer/EO Media Group
Cars sit in the lot behind La Grande Auto Repair on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022. Owner Joe Horst says that many of the dozen
or so cars are waiting for parts, some of which are increasingly difficult to procure.
See, Meat/Page B6
Oregon exports to Ukraine – but not very much, state says
By LES ZAITZ
Oregon Capital Chronicle
SALEM — Oregon’s
main export to Ukraine is
fish but the country rep-
resents a small share of
foreign trade for the state,
according to Business
Oregon, the state’s eco-
nomic development agency.
Total exports to
Ukraine in 2021 were
$7,332,225, a fraction of
Oregon’s $29.6 billion in
total exports.
Business Oregon said
the state exported $2.5
million worth of fish to
Ukraine in 2021, making
it the fifth largest market
for Oregon. The majority
was of that was Pacific
whiting, also known as
hake.
Total fish exports were
$54.4 million and the top
markets for Oregon were
Canada, Japan, Nigeria
and China.
By the numbers, here
are the top 10 exports to
Ukraine from Oregon last
year, as reported by Busi-
ness Oregon:
• Fish – $2,501,650
• Machinery, except
electrical – $1,548,849
• Items donated for
relief – $1,278,750
• Fabricated metal
products – $684,191
• Computer and elec-
tronic products – $315,948
• Agricultural products
– $243,150
• Used or secondhand
merchandise – $150,923
• Food and kindred
products – $149,886
• Chemicals – $124,262
• Electrical equipment,
appliances – $112,220
“Machinery appears
to be a mix of things
in terms of exports to
Ukraine: machinery for
screening minerals, tele-
scopic sights and peri-
scopes, sorting and scan-
ning equipment,” said
Nathan Buehler, of Busi-
ness Oregon.
He said the agency’s
work on helping Oregon
companies develop export
markets is focused on
Japan, Europe, Canada
and Southeast Asia.
“We aren’t focused on
growth in Ukraine,”
Buehler said.
Oregon Trawl Commission/Contributed Photo
Pacific whiting is the main export to Ukraine from Oregon, but it is a small
portion of the state’s total export trade.