[ad_1]
David Benda
Redding Record Searchlight
Published 11:00 AM EDT Mar 28, 2020
Faced with shutting down production due to the coronavirus pandemic, Denny Bar Co. Distillery has pivoted to help people weather the health crisis and keep its people employed.
Instead of whiskey, the Etna business is making hand sanitizer. The first batch rolled off the production line about a week ago and was put into 400 2-ounce bottles, which were distributed for free to the community.
“We are staying nimble enough to kind of evolve with the scenario and at the same time we are able to keep everybody busy and viable and employed, and give something back that is needed and beneficial,” marketing manager Lance Banks said.
Ethanol, glycerin, hydrogen peroxide and lavender oil for scent is in the hand sanitizer.
“The formula we are using is based on the World Health Organization’s recommendation for hand rub. There is 80% ethanol once we blend in the other ingredients,” Banks said. “The sweet spot is between 70 and 80%.”
Much like California alcohol regulators giving the OK to restaurants to sell cocktails to go, the ability for Denny Bar to make hand sanitizer is a sign of the times.
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) has given distilleries that produce gin, vodka and whiskey a waiver to make hand sanitizer as stories about a shortage of the hygiene product reverberate around the world.
“The catalyst was the TTB opening up the regulations,” Banks said.
The biggest challenge is finding enough bottles to put the hand sanitizer in. That’s because the supply chain for bottles has been dramatically disrupted due to the coronavirus.
“It’s unbelievable. The major distilleries and people at home kind of flooded the market and started ordering containers, little plastic bottles,” Banks said. “So it’s super challenging finding anyone with any stock of any substance that can be shipped.”
Currently, the distillery is focusing making hand sanitizer for first responders. The company also will continue to make 2-ounce bottles for people in need, and then 4-ounce bottles that will sell for $6 apiece, Banks said. The company has started a sign-up list for orders.
“We haven’t set an end date,” Banks said when asked when the distillery will stop making hand sanitizer. “We would like to continue as long there is a demand and the need is there and as long as our governing body allows us to produce it legally.”
Meanwhile, Denny Bar Distillery and its restaurant is selling food and alcohol to go.
“We have an inventory of gin and vodka (and whiskey),” Banks said. “We do have it available, we’re just not creating any more. … We can now ship it to consumers.”
Help is on the way for businesses
Friday afternoon, President Trump signed a $2 trillion coronavirus relief package hours after Congress approved the aid.
Help for businesses includes the Paycheck Protection Program, a $350 billion aid package that is modeled after the Small Business Administration’s 7(a) lending program. The loans are 100% government guaranteed and essentially available to businesses with up to 500 workers.
“That’s most (businesses) in Redding,” Chamber of Commerce president Jake Mangas said.
Loans that would cover two-and-a-half months of payroll or no more than $10 million are available to employers who retain workers, maintain payroll and pay for overhead costs such as lease and mortgage payments, and monthly utility bills.
Nonprofits, including 501c3s and 501c6s, like business organizations, are also eligible.
Mangas said he spoke to one local bank that told him it already has a waiting list of about 70 businesses.
Local banks participating in the program include Cornerstone, Golden Valley, Five Star and Tri Counties, Mangas said.
Meanwhile, last week the SBA announced the availability of disaster-relief loans to help businesses cope with the coronavirus.
Joe Rodola, of the Shasta Cascade Small Business Development Center in Redding, said the demand for the loans swamped the system.
“What happened is when the SBA online application process (went live) two days ago, it went down — it imploded,” Rodola told me Thursday. “Over 4 million applications, we were told, were trying to go through the site at once and it killed the site.”
The Shasta Cascade Small Business Development Center on its website has a series of webinars to help businesses and a coronavirus survival guide.
Explosion of unemployment claims. What do local numbers show?
The U.S. Labor Department announced that 3.2 million Americans filed for unemployment insurance for the week ending March 20, the highest level in the department’s history. The previous high was 695,000 in October 1982.
Numbers for local counties were not available, though the California Employment Development Department reported it processed 186,809 unemployment benefits.
And we might not know the full punch of how the coronavirus is affecting employment in Shasta County until the May jobs report.
COVID-19 news: Newsom announces statewide eviction moratorium during coronavirus pandemic
That’s because the March survey the state conducted for its April report only went through the 12th — exactly a week before Gov. Gavin Newsom issued his stay-at-home directive for the entire state and told non-essential businesses to close.
“So it definitely won’t capture the whole trend. It probably won’t be until at least May or June that we really see what is happening,” said Randall Weaver, a North State labor market analyst for the EDD.
For the record, Shasta County’s unemployment rate in February was 5.5%, up slightly from 5.4% in January, the state reported on Friday. It was 6.1% in February 2019.
Stay tuned.
Getting ready for the next power outage
If you have driven up Lake Boulevard/Highway 299 in Redding, you’ve noticed the traffic lights at the Hilltop Drive and North Market Street intersections, among other places, have been outfitted with reflective back plates.
The reflective plates are being installed to help drivers during a power outage, which California had a few of last year as part of Pacific Gas & Electric Co.’s planned shutoffs to reduce wildfire danger.
“The border lets folks know they are approaching an intersection during times of power outages,” Caltrans spokesman Chris Woodward said.
The reflective plates also make the lights stand out more during daytime and nighttime driving conditions.
Caltrans started on Highway 36 in Tehama County and currently crews are working their way up the Highway 273 corridor in Anderson and Redding, and the Highway 299 corridor.
READ MORE BUZZ:
- Stillwater lands a second buyer. A virtual meeting for Costco?
- Former Costco site in default; Realtor says deal to avoid foreclosure in works
- Street fair, umbrellas, holiday lights debut this year. Here’s a preview
David Benda covers business, development and anything else that comes up for the USA TODAY Network in Redding. He also writes the weekly “Buzz on the Street” column. He’s part of a team of dedicated reporters that investigate wrongdoing, cover breaking news and tell other stories about your community. Reach him on Twitter @DavidBenda_RS or by phone at 1-530-225-8219. To support and sustain this work, please subscribe today.
Let’s block ads! (Why?)
[ad_2]