From masks to sanitizer: VT businesses adapt, worry & work for change in face of pandemic

How are Vermont businesses coping with the COVID-19 pandemic? For some, it means reinventing themselves. Caledonia Spirits and Silo Distillery have transformed from distilling spirits to making hand sanitizer for area hospitals and residents. Vermont Glove has transformed from sewing handmade leather gloves to making hand-sewn face masks for health care providers and public servants. Twincraft Skincare, a leading manufacturer of soap, is hiring to meet unprecedented demand. But other businesses are struggling with layoffs and uncertainty about what the future holds. We speak with Vermont businesspeople about how they are innovating, adapting and worrying about the uncertain future, and the chance to enact long-term change as a result of the crisis.(March 25, 2020 broadcast)

John & Jen Kimmich, The Alchemist, Stowe, VT

Ryan Christiansen, Caledonia Spirits, Montpelier, VT

Peter Jillson, Silo Distillery, Windsor, VT

Michele Asch, Twincraft Skincare, Winooski, VT

Bill Butcher, Mocha Joe’s Roasting Co., Brattleboro, VT

Sam Hooper, Vermont Glove, Randolph, VT

Vermont’s spirits revolution

There is a revolution in spirits going on in Vermont — not (just) the new age kind, but the kind you drink. The craft beer revolution has spawned a sister act. To talk about the explosion in popularity and varieties of Vermont spirits:

Mimi Buttenheim, President, Mad River Distillers, vice president of Distilled Spirits Council of Vermont

Ryan Chistiansen, distiller, Caledonia Spirits

Can sustainable food save Vermont & the world? 7-23-14

We look at how sustainable food and agriculture has transformed the Northeast Kingdom community of Hardwick and Vermont, and the lessons this holds for the world.

–Sarah Waring, executive director, Center for an Agricultural Economy
–Tom Stearns, High Mowing Seeds, and board president, CAE
–Todd Hardie, Caledonia Spirits
–Terry O’Brien-Reil, Eden Ice Cider and Northeast Kingdom Tasting Center, Newport