The dead of winter is passing and with each day that moves above 32 degrees, I'm reminded that spring is coming! Then, I start to think... I'm not a bear. I'm not hibernating. I've got to get to work!
This past month has been a busy one for
Barkwheats. We have been adding new stores all the time, getting more free press than most other dog treat companies out there, and are gearing up for more distribution throughout the country. Our current focus is on t…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on February 6, 2009 at 8:30am —
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Being a small business owner is no doubt a tough thing to do. You tend to hear of people owning their own businesses because they want "freedom" or to "be at home with the kids". For me, sure, I wanted freedom from a corporate lifestyle I had grown sick of. But... freedom in the sense that I can do whatever I want with my time is far, far from how I live my life as a small business owner. It's a 16 hour a day gig for me.
I'd been working to have
Associated B…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on January 14, 2009 at 7:28am —
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MEBSR (Maine Businesses for Social Responsibility) will be hosting a statewide Leadership Series throughout 2009 to spotlight various topics from entrepreneurship, climate change, buying locally, venture capital, etc. Many different topics to quench the small business's thirst for knowledge.
Barkwheats will be speaking at the lecture on Tuesday, February 24 from 4-6 at the Androscoggin Chamber of Commerce in Lewiston. Th…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on January 9, 2009 at 7:45am —
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Today brings a brand new year with the shivering sunshine peeking above the horizon. What will 2009 bring for all? Exactly what you want it to. Businesses have a chance to really shine this year after a less than stellar 2008. A chance to lead the pack and do something really great with your business. As business owners we have the real ability to affect environmental and social change and make 2009 a banner year for green businesses going forward.
Start with the small steps. Change your light…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on January 1, 2009 at 7:31am —
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"Success Breeds Success"
We've all heard it, some of really "know it" and few have internalized it and see it happen in their lives every single day. How do the successful people of the world become successful? What is success to you? Success is different to so many people. To some, it's seeing their ideas play out on a world stage with products they've created. To others, it's seeing their life mission help and cure people of sickness, poverty, etc. But did that all happen at once?
To me, suc…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on December 30, 2008 at 6:46am —
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Round and Round, until they hit a rut in the pavement and everything seems to come to screeching halt, people fly out of their seats and land next to that one person you really didn't want to sit next to in the first place.
What do you do when that happens to you? To your business? Lots of people lately have found themselves in a rut of sorts, having trouble keeping on top of the bills, keeping the house at 72 degrees, keeping their employees on the payroll, etc. With so many ways to deal with…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on December 26, 2008 at 11:52am —
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Just a quick note to wish everyone a happy holiday and a happy every day there after.
My dad was awesome yesterday by offering up a Christmas Eve breakfast made with nearly ALL locally produced food stuffs! How cool?! THANKS DAD!
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on December 25, 2008 at 8:02am —
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Because the bags that hold our
Barkwheats dog biscuits are made from wood pulp, I learned the other day that they carry the same energy value as wood, and can be safely disposed of by burning. In a modern woodstove that has a nice high efficiency rating, our bags can be tossed right in to recover their energy value! Now this, I thought, is so awesome.
NatureFlex will also degrade in a waste water situation, too. I…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on December 13, 2008 at 7:27am —
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I just found out this morning that the
cellulose based bag that we use for
Barkwheats is carbon neutral! Over the past 25 years the plant that the film is produced in has been striving for energy efficiency in every thing that they do. By doing things like converting heat power from coal to natural gas, installing water effluent treatment plants, expanding their processing aid recovery systems and investing in more…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on December 8, 2008 at 11:52am —
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Barkwheats will be in Portland from 12-3 at FETCH on Commercial St in Portland! It'll be an awesome event to get a chance to speak with the green leaders in the pet industry. We are the first company that manufactures pet products to be certified as a B Corporation, demonstrating our commitment to social and environmental responsibility at the corporate level.
Please join us as we'll have free biscuits for your dogs to snack on and literature and pins and fun stories!!
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on December 7, 2008 at 11:21am —
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Barkwheats is now officially a
Certified B Corporation . We join the ranks of Method, Seventh Generation, IceStone and many others in taking steps to make the world a more socially and environmentally just place. We are the first pet products manufacturer to become a Certified B Corp, too!
Why is being a B Corp such a good thing? It differentiates Barkwheats from other businesses by showing that we are dedicated to doing well while doing good. Through a…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on December 5, 2008 at 2:55pm —
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We finally got word today that we've made it through the intense screening process that's been 10 weeks in the making and we're officially Coop America Approved for people and planet. :)
Learn more about Coop America by going
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on November 24, 2008 at 6:55pm —
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Sign the petition!!!
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on November 24, 2008 at 5:31pm —
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I was reading
this article on greenbiz.com about how small business can have the biggest impact on the environment and social justice throughout the world. It states that in 2006, small businesses (less than 500 people) made up 99.9% of the more than 26 million businesses in the US. Small businesses account for about half of the private sector workforce and use half the electricity in the US. What's…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on November 23, 2008 at 8:33pm —
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Just as we returned from beautiful San Francisco to the cold and bitter Northeast, we found an extra ray of sunshine coming from our mailbox! Barkwheats was put into The Ultimate Gift Guide in Modern Dog Magazine and we just got our copy of it. Sooo exciting! It's really great to be recognized for the good that we're doing supporting Maine farmers and acting in an environmentally responsible way.
…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on November 21, 2008 at 10:06am —
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Tomorrow we head on home from San Francisco from a great week of learning about responsible business practices. We've got lots to share, and we will....we promise. For now, it's bed time. Tomorrow we fly for the whole day.
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on November 17, 2008 at 1:42am —
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on November 16, 2008 at 11:09am —
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So many things happened over these past two days that were completely amazing. We heard from the founders of Terracycle, Honestea, Burt's Bees, IceStone, Vital Hemptations.... just to name a few. What did we take away? So much. One of the most major ideas that happened upon us is the democratization of organics. It was a term that Seth Goldman from Honestea talked about regarding the partial sale of their business to Coca-cola. It's a major shift in our paradigm and will take a major shift in th…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on November 14, 2008 at 11:16am —
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"Smooth seas do not make skilled sailors"
I'm sitting inside the Whitcomb Ballroom at the Green Business Conference in San Francisco. Seth Goldman the President of Honest Tea is speaking to us about selling part of his company to Coca-Cola. Up on the screen is the African proverb stated above. That sums up so well what everyone is going through in the "green" movement. More to come...
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on November 13, 2008 at 1:35pm —
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"What about the people?" Jay Coen Gilbert who is a co CEO of
B-Corporation asked that question during an interview that's up on their site. B Corporations are something that I have just recently learned about and feel very strongly about. As many know, this is right where Barkwheats fits in with not just having an environmentally friendly product, but being able to sustain and support local farms and family farms and the local economy. In supporting thes…
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Added by Barkwheats Dog Biscuits on November 4, 2008 at 8:00am —
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