A USDA official today announced that Great Basin Organics, LLC, a Carson Valley business, has received a $671,000 loan from Heritage Bank, guaranteed by USDA Rural Development, to support the company’s production of high quality compost from local materials.
Funds will be used to refinance two loans with pending balloon payments, stabilizing Great Basin Organics’ cost of development capital. The co-borrower, Genoa Trees and Landscape, Inc. supplies large trees and an assortment of plants to Northern Nevada. The loan will retain seven jobs. The funding was announced by USDA RD Deputy Under Secretary Patrice Kunesh, at an event at Great Basin Organics.
“The creativity of rural Americans is absolutely one of the strengths of our nation as I have seen demonstrated here today at Great Basin Organics,” said Kunesh. “Combining farm and food waste with biomass reuses natural resources and creates jobs all at the same time. USDA’s ability to partner with lenders and business owners to build the bioeconomy is a top priority and a great source of pride for us.”
Tom Traficanti, Executive Vice President of Heritage Bank of Nevada, applauded the funding announcement.
“Heritage Bank is extremely proud to support the expansion of a local small business, Genoa Trees and Landscapes and its subsidiary business, Great Basin Organics, which are owned by Dink Getty. With the assistance of loan guarantees from the USDA via its Business and Industry Loan Guarantee Program, Heritage Bank has been able to provide the financing Dink needed to achieve his next level of growth, creating economic benefits for everyone in our local community. All of us at Heritage Bank are proud that we, as a local community bank, are able to help small businesses like Genoa Trees expand and thrive in our community.”
Dink Getty said that he learned about the USDA loan program from Traficanti while attending a green energy conference. "If it wasn't for the USDA Loan Program that Tom Traficanti knew about, Great Basin Organics would not be in business today."
Getty provided a tour of his operations at the event. He accepts donations of wood chips and manure from horse operations, and also uses residual coffee from a local roasting company to create high grade compost. He is expecting to expand operations in the near future, and is interested in creating compost that uses bio-char.