Enrich Foods’ exec talks benefits of Climate-Friendly Rice

PORTLAND, ORE. — Conducting business in an environmentally-friendly manner has become a critical aspect of agricultural production and processing as efforts are being made to mitigate climate change, reduce energy output and conserve natural resources.

Columbia Grain International (CGI), a global leader in origination, processing, logistics and distribution of bulk grains, pulses, oilseeds and organics for the United States and worldwide export markets, has for many years made sustainability a top priority. Portland, Oregon, US-based CGI has a network of over 8,000 farmers and 70 processing facilities across the northern tier of the United States, supplying grains to over 45 countries, and is the largest supplier of beans and pulse crops in North America.

Enrich Foods, LLC was formed in 2023 as an operating subsidiary of CGI, and under the Enrich Foods entity, CGI acquired the assets of Great River Milling, a miller and packer of organic grains based in western Wisconsin. Enrich provides CGI with a platform to produce consumer packages and its Great River Milling acquisition enables CGI to expand its range of organic and regenerative commodity supply. 

Bill Germano, chief operating officer of Enrich Foods, recently spoke with World Grain, a sister publication of Milling & Baking News, about the company’s most recent initiative — its innovative Climate-Friendly Rice program. 

WG: Tell us about your background and what led you to your current position?

Germano: My background is in consumer products. For the past 20 years I’ve been involved with several new or early-stage food and beverage companies to lead them through early stages of growth and development. Joining with Columbia Grain International to help cultivate the growth of a consumer products division was an easy decision for me. CGI is a long-established and highly respected supplier of agricultural commodities and is very committed to expanding its market capabilities. It’s a new endeavor for them and a perfect fit. I’m proud to be part of their team.

WG: Tell us about Climate-Friendly Rice. How does it differ from conventional rice?

Germano: That’s a great question. It starts with the recognition that cultivating rice can be a significant contributor to factors that affect the environment, like for example high water usage or significant greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, it’s projected that by 2030 conventional rice cultivation will be responsible for 23% of all of agriculture’s contribution to environmental impact.

Climate-Friendly Rice is a growing process developed by AgriCapture and subsidized by the USDA as part of their Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities Initiative. The process is based on managing water levels throughout the growing cycle by employing a proprietary Alternative Wet/Dry (AWD) method. The AgriCapture program is fully Identity Protected, with equipment in the field that can track and measure metrics so that the positive benefits can be quantified and verified. As a result, this process is recognized by the USDA to fully conform and protect the standards identified to qualify for Climate Friendly certification.

The Enrich Foods subsidiary of CGI is the exclusive marketing and distribution arm of this joint venture. This program represents a significant investment in resources and commitment by all involved, but USDA support was critical to get us to the point of this first of a kind market-ready product.

WG: How was your rice selected as the first consumer product emanating from the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities initiative?

Germano: To qualify for the USDA program the method must be beneficial for the farmer, scalable for future broad application, Identity Protected, and provide a measurable benefit that can also be validated and certified. There are rightfully a number of other sustainability efforts throughout the agricultural marketplace but as far as we know there is nothing more thorough, and that tracks the same level of certifiable results than the AgriCapture program.

WG: What can you tell us about the event in late March in Wisconsin?

Germano: This was a watershed moment for CGI. As I mentioned, the USDA is heavily invested in several active projects related to their PC-SC Initiatives. The joint Climate-Friendly Certified Rice project is the first of these to reach the consumer as we launched our first packages at the end of March. And US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack is committed to creating new revenue streams for American farmers as well as offsetting agricultural pollutants and waste. So, the secretary was kind enough to visit our Great River Milling packing facility in Fountain City Wisconsin to celebrate the first packages coming off the line.

And it was quite an event for us and our partners AgriCapture as well as the USDA. We hosted 140 guests coming from government and the agriculture community. Speakers, among others, included Jeff Van Pevenage, CEO of Columbia Grain International; Randy Romanski, Secretary of Agriculture for the State of Wisconsin; John Farris, chairman of AgriCapture; and Jim Whitaker, a member of the Arkansas Rice Farmers Board, supplier to the AgriCapture program, and well-known speaker on the positive impacts of AWD rice farming. The event was also live streamed on USDA.gov.

But the keynote speaker was, of course, Secretary Vilsack. He opened his address to the dignitaries by stating, “Today is an extraordinarily important day for American Agriculture, and for our country.” He spoke of the importance not only of this program but an example of what can be achieved by collaboration and commitment of the ag community. Jeff Van Pevenage also spoke about CGI’s commitment to leading sustainability and regenerative practices that would benefit not just our own extensive network of farmers but could also help the industry in general as we work towards a more sustainable future.

WG: Where are you sourcing your rice from?

Germano: All our rice is grown in Arkansas through a collective group of farmers across the state that have committed to following the AWD process and program.

WG: What are the benefits of Climate-Friendly Rice to people and the planet?

Germano: This is what excites us most as the benefits can reach anyone. For consumers, the AWD process significantly reduces pesticide residue and levels of heavy metals, as less water means less absorption. For the environment this process is certified to reduce water usage by 33% and could significantly reduce levels of greenhouse gas emissions by 60% to 90%. That in and of itself makes this project worthwhile. And of course, ultimately, we want to help create new and stable revenue streams and sustainability practices for American farmers that could be put in use in scale. Like any innovation, there is a cost to developing these practices. But as we learn and the market grows, our hope is that Climate-Friendly Rice becomes more accessible and understood, and mainstreams into the broader consumer market.

WG: What are your distribution plans for 2024 and beyond?

Germano: We’re in the initial stages of a market launch now and our intentions are to make Climate-Friendly Rice an option for consumers directly as well as a value-added option for food manufacturers that use rice as a key ingredient. Our Great River Milling retail brand is being introduced to retailer groups across the US and should start to gradually show up on store shelves this summer. A large part of our consumer package business currently is packing under retailer private labels, and we believe that our product will help support their own general sustainability goals. We are in conversation with several retailers and store brands with a Climate-Friendly seal could start to show up later this year.

We believe that the Climate-Friendly certification could be of value to the restaurant industry as well as an ingredient for food producers. Beyond supporting sustainability initiatives, think of the opportunity for baby food producers who could reduce levels of inorganic heavy metals for example. Our intent is to reach these industrial decision makers in the coming months and provide them with options to improve their branding as well as nutritionals, and same for restaurant supply. Our Climate-Friendly Rice is currently in an initial test with a national quick-serve restaurant chain, and we hope to reach more later this year.