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March 2005 Issue
FarmConnect 2005 Annual Meeting
The 5th Annual FarmConnect meetings will be held on March 23 and March 24 as listed below:
• March 23, 2005
Where: Crookston, MN
Place: Northland Inn
Time: 10:30 am
• March 24, 2005
Where: Morton, MN
Place: Jackpot Junction Conference Center
Time: 2:00 pm
At the meetings, we will give you an update on the status of FarmConnect
including a review of the 2004 year-end financial report and an update on several of its projects such as SoyLink, Heartland Ingredients, grain procurement activities and future opportunities. We hope to:
• Openly discuss FarmConnect's direction,
• Answer questions, and
• Have time for informal discussion before and after the meeting.
Over the past 5 years, FarmConnect staff and the board of directors have evaluated many different projects. Through these project evaluation efforts
and the experience we have gained in this assessment, it has become pretty clear that our best opportunities are in two primary areas.
1. Specialty food ingredients and products
2. Specialty crop production
Developing projects that use your specialty crop production to make unique food ingredients and products provide the greatest opportunity to add the
most value to you as a member. We currently have two projects that are great examples of these types of projects.
• SoyLink
• Heartland Ingredients
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SoyLink continues to be a project with great opportunity. The fine soy
powder is generally referred to as the best soy powder on the market. SoyLink's first major product roll-out started with Organic Valley introducing
the first completely organic soy milk to the retail market. The Organic Valley Soy product uses SoyLink soy powder as its only soy ingredient. Organic
Valley Soy sales are expanding to more stores all the time and these products are currently on the retail shelves in California and other states and
now they are making their way into retail stores in the Midwest. We have seen product on the shelves in:
• Sioux Falls, SD at two Hy-Vee stores,
• St. Paul, MN at the Mississippi Market
• Other locations
While Organic Valley is pleased with the market penetration of this new
product, we would like to see it in many more stores across the country and we certainly want it to be in every store in the Midwest.
You can help us to accomplish this goal by talking to your grocer and asking them to carry the product. Because your grocers listen to their customers,
they will stock this product if you ask them to. In your package of materials you will notice a product request card. This card provides the information the
grocer needs to help them obtain the product. You can help us drive this product into the local stores by simply presenting this card to your grocer
and asking them to carry the product. It is available in three flavors, original, vanilla, and chocolate. These products should be available to your grocer through their regular supplier.
After the product is on the store shelf, give them a try. They provide nutrition and health benefits in a great-tasting product.
Heartland Ingredients
is one of our latest projects that produces, markets, and sells innovative gluten-free food products under the Heartland's Finest label. The products are marketed to Celiacs and people who have
other allergies to products that contain wheat, rye, and barley.
After attending the Celiac-Sprue Association national convention in October
Jim LeCureux and I have a much better appreciation of how difficult it is for people with these allergies and diseases to find good tasting nutritious foods
to eat. You are not able to fully appreciate the scope of the problem until you have spent several days eating with them. It is no wonder that they are
so focused on finding good tasting products they can eat and why they are so excited about our products.
Heartland Ingredients is currently selling the following pasta products:
• Spaghetti
• Linguini
• Elbow
• Ziti
• Rotini
A Macaroni and Cheese will soon be on the market and we expect to add breakfast cereal products and other snack foods over the next year.
These products are currently on retail store shelves on the East Coast, in Michigan, California and other states. These premium products are pre
-cooked and are quick and easy to prepare. The best part is that they taste like the pasta celiac's used to love to eat before they were diagnosed with the disease.
We will have samples of the pasta products at the annual meeting for you to take home and try. The products are made from navy beans and corn and
provide high- protein, high-fiber pasta products that are very nutritious and great tasting. If you are interested in more information on Heartland Ingredients, please visit the website at www.heartlandingredients.com.
Heartland's Finest products are sold in health food and specialty food stores.
You can help us drive this product into the market just like the Organic Soy product by talking to your grocer. We have included a gluten-free product
request card that you can present to your local specialty food or health food store. We appreciate any help you can give us to get the word out on these
new products. The products can also be purchased directly from the website or by calling the toll-free order line at 888-658-8909.
As a member of FarmConnect, you are one of the owners in this new
company. It is another benefit of your membership in this cooperative.
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Annual Dues
The annual dues that you pay every year are critical to help us developing new projects.
Our by-laws state:
Members must pay an annual membership fee (currently $100) to maintain
membership. The annual membership fee requirements may be changed by the Board of Directors and each member will receive prior written notice of
any changes. A member who does not pay the annual membership fee when due becomes inactive and forfeits both the right to participate in the
cooperative's activities and the right to vote in the affairs of the cooperative until the annual membership fee is paid and membership is reinstated.
Please be sure to maintain your membership status by promptly paying your
dues so you can take part in the projects that we develop.
Summary
Our first meeting to discuss the concept of FarmConnect was held in
October 1998. Since then we have been working through FarmConnect to develop and implement the idea. Nearly 6 ½ years later FarmConnect is a
valid and unique way to differentiate your production and participate in the food industry. We all understand how long it takes to develop new markets
and new companies. They also take a lot of patience and hard work. Because FarmConnect is constantly working on new ideas, patience is very
important. Thank you for your patience and for continuing to support this important effort.
Please plan to attend one of the annual meetings
and learn more.
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