GFA Members Work Together for a Solution

White Oak Pastures is a grassfed beef ranch in Bluffton, GA with the state's first artisan processing plant on-site. The beef production process was filled with inefficiencies due to their water heater's inability to keep a consistent supply of hot water to clean the processing areas. Hannah Solar came to the rescue and installed a Solar Thermal Collection system that supplies ample hot water during peak afternoon production.

Hannah Solar Panels @ White Oak Pastures

The solution had an upfront $40,000 cost, which qualified for federal and state grants and bonus and standard depreciation. With these deductions, the net cost to White Oak Pastures was roughly $6,500. Payback is expected in the first year due to lower utility costs and labor savings.

How wonderful to report that installing eco-friendly energy solutions can end up saving money in the second year of operations!

Restaurant Forum Goes Green with the April Issue

Restaurant Forum, the Official Magazine for the GRA, dedicated the April issue to Georgia Grown and Green topics for the second year. The GFA received excellent coverage through the entire issue including the CEO Message from Ron Wolf on page 4, GFA: A New Era in Sustainability by Holly Elmore, GFA Founder & Executive Director, on page 6, Announcement of ECCO’s GFA Green Certification on page 10 and the Management Column by Debby Cannon, Director of the School of Hospitality, Georgia State University, on page 22.

A big thank you to John Sawyer, Restaurant Forum Publisher, and Dora Burke, Managing Editor, for dedicating an entire issue to the impact of our industry’s practices on the environment.

ECCO First GFA Green Certified Restaurant

At the January quarterly meeting, the GFA announced ECCO was the first GFA Green Certified Restaurant in the new program. The media is enthusiastic with their response to ECCO’s press release. Here are a few of the articles and mentions: The Sunday Paper, GoGreen Blog, and Restaurant Forum (April issue, page 10). Check out Steve Simon’s cool picture with his green shirt!