Current News
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Vermont Business Magazine When the Biden Administration announced last week that 25M masks would be made available through food banks and health centers, Shelburne-based Masks4Missions realized that they might have helped plant the seed for large-scale mask distribution.
Masks4Missions is a youth-led organization formed in August 2020 to work with nonprofit organizations to provide masks to at-risk populations and encourage the general public to wear masks. Since August, the organization has given out over 100,000 masks in partnership with more than 90 nonprofits across the US. Some of those masks were distributed through Vermont Foodbank.
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Vermont Business Magazine Are you 65 or older and looking for a vaccine appointment in the Burlington area? There are lots of open first-dose appointments at Vermont National Guard-run clinics on March 5, 6 and 7 in South Burlington. If you want to schedule your appointment, or already have one set for later and want to reschedule, go to healthvermont.gov/MyVaccine to find those clinics or call 855-722-7878.
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Vermont Business Magazine GasBuddy is warning motorists today that the national average may breach $3 per gallon of gasoline by Memorial Day after OPEC’s meeting today closed with no meaningful increase in oil production. Gasoline prices nationwide are up 5 cents this week to $2.74 nationally and to $2.66 in Vermont. OPEC’s large cuts to oil production in 2020 will generally be extended. The last time the national average reached the $3/gal threshold was over 2,300 days ago, on October 10, 2014.
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Vermont Business Magazine A recent antibody serosurvey of students and teachers in the Colchester School District shows an expected prevalence of COVID-19 in a school setting. Dr Benjamin Lee, an infectious disease expert at the University of Vermont Medical Center Children’s Hospital, and Dr Sean Bullis, a UVM Medical Center infectious diseases fellow, conducted the survey in December. COVID-19 antibodies were successfully measured in 532 participants, including 336 students and 196 teachers/staff. Funding for the study was provided by the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Fund.
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Vermont Business Magazine For the first time since 2007, preliminary data from the National Safety Council show that as many as 42,060 people are estimated to have died in motor vehicle crashes in 2020. That marks an 8 percent increase over 2019 in a year where people drove significantly less frequently because of the pandemic. Vermont saw a fatal crash increase of 32 percent, which is the largest increase in the nation. The preliminary estimated rate of death on US roads last year spiked 24 percent over the previous 12-month period, despite miles driven dropping 13 percent. The increase in the rate of death is the highest estimated year-over-year jump that NSC has calculated since 1924 – 96 years.
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Vermont State Police Following an investigation that began in December 2020, the Vermont State Police has cited Nicholas Cianci, 25, of Bradford on suspicion of physically assaulting and threatening a woman with whom he was in a relationship. Cianci is a detective trooper with the Vermont State Police assigned to the Bureau of Criminal Investigations-Troop A East based at the St. Johnsbury Barracks. He has been on paid relief from duty since Dec. 7, 2020. He had been on paid relief from duty since Dec. 7, 2020. His current status as of March 3 is unpaid relief from duty while the investigation continues.
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Vermont Business Magazine Maple sugaring – as it is called among locals - is a labor of love, and often, as in the Robb Family Farm and Sugarhouse’s case, it is the financial lifeblood that sustains the century-old family farm in Brattleboro, Vermont. The season for harvesting and boiling the maple sap into thick, sweet maple syrup is a short critical one, lasting only several weeks right before spring. The Robbs sell Vermont maple syrup, maple candy and maple cream online and in their country store located next to their sugar house. A good portion of their sales is made during that time from people visiting their sugarhouse producing enough money to cover their operating costs for the year. But the coronavirus upended their dependable revenue stream.
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Vermont Business Magazine Terra Vera, an Albuquerque-based agtech company specializing in non-toxic, sustainable crop management solutions for cannabis and other industries, is fueling its expansion around the country with a newly announced $2 million in seed funding. One of their key investors include Will Raap, Vermont’s renowned environmental entrepreneur, founder and Chairman of Gardener’s Supply Company, which is one of the world’s largest online gardening retailers and has also been recognized for its socially responsible business initiatives. Raap is also the founder of the Intervale Center, a nonprofit developing farm- and land-based enterprises that generate economic and social opportunity while protecting natural resources.
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Appalachian Gap Distillery making big changes to reduce carbon footprint
Vermont Business Magazine VGS and Appalachian Gap Distillery announced today the distillery has committed to offset half of its natural gas usage with VGS’s first-in-the-nation renewable natural gas (RNG) to produce its quality craft spirits. This announcement is another step in the Company’s progress towards becoming certified by Climate Neutral, a trusted NetZero certification for consumer brands through a non-profit organization whose mission is to decrease global carbon emissions.
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Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health is reporting 115 new cases of COVID-19 and one more death for a statewide total of 207. The Department of Corrections is reporting a major outbreak at the prison in Newport, with 100 new cases for a total of 127 positive incarcerated cases and 10 positive staff cases at the facility. Meanwhile, the VA Medical Center will be holding a one-day only vaccine clinic for veterans of any age on Friday at the Essex Fairgrounds. The VDH separately has expanded its vaccination and testing sites.
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Vermont Business Magazine As claimants begin to receive their new 1099-G forms, the Vermont Department of Labor (VDOL) is reminding Vermonters of the following guidance issued by the Department last week. Many Vermonters will receive more than one 1099-G, reflecting the different benefit programs available in 2020. Claimants can identify the program their 1099-G is for by using the code in the bottom left-hand corner of the tax document. All claimants fall into one of two base programs, which are either Unemployment Insurance (UI) or Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA). From there, many claimants also received additional benefits from a variety of supplemental programs.
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Vermont Business Magazine The White River Junction VA Medical Center announced today that it will be hosting a COVID-19 Vaccine Walk-In Clinic for VA enrolled veterans of all ages with existing medical conditions. The clinic will take place at the Champlain Valley Exposition – Gate B, 105 Pearl Street, in Essex Junction, on Friday, March 5 from 9 am to 1 pm.