Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Today Vermont Law School (VLS) and Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) announced the launch of the Vermont Legal Food Hub. Located at VLS’s Center for Agriculture and Food Systems (CAFS) in South Royalton, the program will match income-eligible farmers and business owners with skilled attorneys willing to provide free legal services.

“A thriving local food system depends on the success of farms and food businesses,” said Sophia Kruszewski, director, CAFS’s Food and Agriculture Clinic. “Yet many of these businesses lack legal support. Our goal is to connect them with the assistance they need to be resilient and grow.”

Vermont Business Magazine Attorney General Donovan took the lead in filing an amicus brief at the US Supreme Court on behalf of thirteen states, plus the District of Columbia, asserting that oil and gas pipelines may not cross the Appalachian Trail in national forests. Congress exempted the National Park System when they otherwise broadly allowed oil and gas pipelines to pass over federal land. The case currently pending before the US Supreme Court, US Forest Service v. Cowpasture River Preservation Association, presents the question of whether the US Forest Service may grant rights-of-way through lands crossed by the Appalachian Trail within national forests.

Vermont Business Magazine Burlington Electric Department (BED) today launched its new Preferred Electric Vehicle Dealership Network through which BED will recommend that the Burlington community shop at local automobile dealerships that will make buying and leasing electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) more easy to navigate and will help advance Burlington’s 2030 goal of becoming a Net Zero Energy (NZE) city. The nine Network dealerships will process both BED and State of Vermont EV and PHEV rebates at the point of sale, allowing customers to benefit from the incentives in their financing packages and not need to engage in additional post-sale paperwork to claim rebates.

​Vermont Business Magazine Grants are now available to support projects through the South Lake Champlain Fund of the Vermont Community Foundation. The South Lake Champlain Fund supports projects focused on education and research concerning the cultural and ecological history and heritage of southern Lake Champlain. Projects must be located on the southern portion of Lake Champlain (the area of Lake Champlain south of Crown Point in both Vermont and New York) with a preference for projects directly on the lake or in close proximity. School-based projects are encouraged. The fund also aims to support projects that involve experts and others living in the southern Lake Champlain region. Matching funds are encouraged but not required.

Vermont Business Magazine About six months before he graduated from the University of Vermont in May, Eric Grunfeld launched his startup company and began developing what he believes is a first-of-its-kind product. Since then, he has worked on a patent application for the technology that he hopes eventually to sell to automobile insurance companies to prevent distracted driving. At every step, Grunfeld grappled with numerous questions but knew no one who could answer them. A UVM friend told him about the new UVM Mentoring Network. Grunfeld searched its database for insurance industry experts who could help him hone his concept. Among them, he found fellow UVM alum Christine Landon.

Vermont Business Magazine Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont today announced a new partnership with a non-profit organization Civica Rx. Civica was formed in 2018 by three philanthropies and numerous health care organizations to develop inpatient generic medications. This new partnership, in conjunction with 18 Blue Cross Blue Shield companies across the nation, as well as other key partners, is to address generic medications outside of the hospital setting. Through this relationship, Vermonters will have greater access to essential medications at more affordable prices and will ensure access to lifesaving drugs.

Vermont Business Magazine While Vermonters support banning food waste from landfills – and a whopping 72 percent already compost or feed food scraps to their pets or livestock – few say they are willing to pay for curbside composting pick-up, new University of Vermont research shows. The study, published today in Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, comes as Vermont prepares to implement a mandatory law that makes it illegal to throw food items in the trash beginning July 1, 2020. Several large cities including San Francisco and Seattle have implemented similar policies, but Vermont is the first state to ban household food waste from landfills. The policy is the last phase of a universal state recycling law passed in 2012 that bans all food waste, “blue bin” recyclables and yard debris from landfills statewide by 2020.

Vermont Business Magazine The Isham name is synonymous with the working land in Williston, and fifth generation farmer Mike Isham is making plans to add a weekly farmers market to the family’s Oak Hill Road activities. Isham, with his name recognition and leadership in Vermont agricultural circles and the family’s success selling products like maple syrup, berries, pumpkins and Christmas trees at the farm, Mike believes he has the foundation for a successful farmers market.

Mike Isham and his wife, Helen Weston have a combined 19 generations of Vermont heritage between them.

In May 2019, the Legislature and Governor Scott established Act 83 to encourage a new wave of agricultural development. The new law calls for the Agency and its partners to research and develop recommendations to stabilize and revitalize Vermont’s agricultural industry.

What Would You Like to See on Our Plate?

by Agriculture Secretary Anson Tebbetts Vermont’s rural communities are intricately tied to our economy, identity and way of life. At the same time, all of Vermont suffers when our farm and forestry sectors falter.

The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, and Vermont Farm to Plate, are taking steps to build on our strengths and innovate for the future. This session the Legislature will hear a preview of the Vermont Agriculture and Food System Plan to stimulate rural economic development and bring Vermont products to people throughout the Green Mountains and beyond.

In collaboration with a wide variety of farmers, producers and business development experts, the plan asks the Agency of Agriculture to set the table for the future of rural Vermont.

Burlington, VT – January 22, 2020 – SeaComm Federal Credit Union presented a check for $50,000 to support the American Cancer Society Hope Lodge program in Burlington. The credit union will open its seventh branch location in South Burlington, in January 2020.

Sometimes, the best treatment is far from home. For some cancer patients living in the North Country, that treatment is in Burlington. The American Cancer Society’s Hope Lodge program makes it an affordable option by providing a free place for cancer patients and their caregiver to stay, in a supportive environment.

Vermont Business Magazine The Center on Rural Innovation (CORI), based in Hartland, has announced that it has been selected to join the portfolio of the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation. CORI’s selection comes as part of DRK’s mission to support the next generation of world-changing social entrepreneurs.