Locally Grown: Colorado

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  Boulder Ice Cream

  Boulder, CO

  Beginning as a small retail ice cream shop on the famous Pearl Street Mall in Boulder, Colorado, Boulder Ice Cream has evolved into a manufacturer of compelling, all-natural gourmet flavors. Their non-homogenized, slow churn process, combined with a unique blend of all-natural ingredients, creates an extra rich and smooth, homemade-style ice cream. Boulder Ice Cream has been selling to Whole Foods Market for more than ten years.
  
  They used their loan to finance business expansion, including the launch of an organic ice cream line.

  Boulder Ice Cream is a Local Producer Loan Program Recipient.
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  Evol Burritos

  Boulder, CO

  Philip Anson founded Phil's Fresh Foods (now Evol Burritos) in January 2002. Since then, the burrito company has gone from being a small one-man show to a nationally-distributed company. Over the past two years, the company has become automated, allowing them to increase production and to enter into co-packing and private label manufacturing. Evol Burritos are available in all of our U.S. and Canada stores.
  
  Phil used the Local Producer Loan funds to expand into a neighboring space, install in-line freezing equipment, and increase in-line quality control with the purchase and installation of a metal detector and check weigher combo machine.

  Evol Burritos is a Local Producer Loan Program Recipient.
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  Full Circle Farm

  Boulder, CO

  Full Circle Farm (aka Rocky Mountain Pumpkin Ranch) is a certified organic vegetable grower who has grown vegetables for Whole Foods Market for more than ten years. Owner Dave Asbury has worked to revive area crops that have been lost to residential and commercial development. For example, Dave developed heirloom melons for production and grows heirloom and antique varieties of "adolescent" lettuces. In addition, Full Circle Farm has partnered with Boulder County Open Space to keep greenbelt from development. Boulder County is losing growers at an alarming rate due to the cost of land and the economic pressures associated with growing in a volatile weather climate.
   
  The loan was used to build a produce-packing shed in order to better serve Whole Foods Market, the Full Circle Farm stand, area farmers markets, and Dave's other accounts.

  Full Circle Farm is a Local Producer Loan Program Recipient.
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  Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy

  Boulder, CO

  Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy produces award-winning artisan goat cheese. Owner Jim Schott has been in the goat dairy business over 15 years after leaving a position in education.
   
  Haystack used the Local Producer Loan funds to consolidate their operations. The project included upgrading their cheese room, building out two aging rooms, purchasing of a 1,000 gallon cheese vat, and purchasing a modern racking systems for use in the new aging rooms. 

  Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy is a Local Producer Loan Program Recipient.
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  Imagiplay

  Boulder, CO

  Barbera Aimes founded ImagiPLAY in 1998 with the purchase of a small cardboard building block business. In the years since then, they have transitioned to becoming a leading distributor of earth-friendly wooden toys. Barbera used the loan funds to purchase additional inventory, which will help them meet the increased demand for their product that their relationship with Whole Foods Market has created.

  Check out ImagiPLAY on the Whole Story blog!

  Imagiplay is a Local Producer Loan Program Recipient.
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  Justin's Nut Butter

  Boulder, CO

  Justin's Nut Butter is a rapidly growing company started from scratch by Justin Gold, a young entrepreneur in Boulder. Justin makes a variety of flavored nut butters, differentiated not only by yummy flavors such as organic cinnamon peanut, honey almond, and maple almond, but also by their availability in single serving squeeze packs for school lunches, hiking, biking, etc.
  
  Whole Foods Market in Boulder was Justin's first retail outlet for his nut butters, and our Team Members are proud to have worked with him to grow his business. Justin's Nut Butter can now be found in every one of our U.S. and Canadian stores! He used his loan to expand his production of the single serving packs.

  Justin's Nut Butter is a Local Producer Loan Program Recipient.
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  MouCo Cheese Company

  Fort Collins, CO

  MouCo Cheese Company is a small family-owned and -operated artisan cheese facility. Birgit Halbreiter, president of the company, grew up in Bavaria, Germany, where cheese making was a family tradition. Her father Franz is a master cheese maker in Germany and serves as a consultant to the company, while her husband, Robert Poland, makes and oversees the cheese production.
   
  The loan was used to purchase new cheese-making equipment, which helped MouCo increase their production volume. 

  MouCo Cheese Company is a Local Producer Loan Program Recipient.
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  Oogave

  Denver, CO

  Oogave is a line of agave-sweetened sodas that was founded in January 2009 as a natural alternative to commercial sodas. It is currently the only carbonated soda that is sweetened with organic agave nectar. Current flavors are Watermelon Cream, Ginger Ale, Root Beer, Cola, Mandarin-Key Lime, and Grapefruit. Oogave used the Local Producer Loan funds to purchase a labeler and a bib filler, as well as to pay for demos at our stores.

  Oogave is a Local Producer Loan Program Recipient.