Owensboro-based Hollison, founded in 2005 is a high-tech food safety company focused on the detection of and protection from pathogens in pet and human food, food sources and their environments.

Most recently Hollison has been generating a food safety bioaerosol sampler — the DuraSampler — that detects pathogens during food production.

With the coronavirus pandemic making companies especially vigilant to try to stop infections, Hollison has adapted it to detect COVID-19 in high-risk areas.

Christopher Thorn, vice president of Brand Management for the company, said the equipment, which is about the size of a small suitcase – collects air samples in distilled water. The equipment doesn’t eliminate the viruses, but it tells those using it if the coronavirus is present.

The World Health Organization says that COVID-19 can stay in the air for up to three hours, therefore the air needs to be tested frequently. “Each device can check spaces the size of an emergency room,” Thorn said.

Christopher Thorn also stated that Hollison has demonstrated the equipment for officials at both Owensboro Health Regional Hospital and Deaconess Hospital and both organizations are considering using it.

Hollison has eight samplers ready to ship and can manufacture 15 more within two weeks. Companies interested can call Christopher Thorn at 812-568-2118.

UniFirst, which has been in Owensboro for more than two decades, is happy to support the community that has supported them. UniFirst has recently donated 10,000 protective face masks to the small business community in Owensboro in support of Govenor Andy Beshear’s strategy to reopen Kentucky’s economy.

Dave Roberts, general manager of distribution at UniFirst, said “there is obviously a tremendous need for PPE in the community, especially for these small businesses to get up and going and to meet the PPE requirements,” Roberts said. “As a part of our business, we do provide safety products and PPE in addition to uniforms and garments, so we decided to make a donation here locally to help other businesses.”

UniFirst’s president and CEO Steven Sintros said, “We’re all in this together and only together will we get through these difficult times.”

Small Business Week takes place to emphasize the vital importance of small businesses to the local economies as well as the economy of the United States. Each year throughout the first week of May we acknowledge their outstanding service, innovation, and development. Though, the most important thing is to recognize the incredible impact and contributions small businesses make all year long.  

The small business owners of America are the heart of our communities – because there is nothing small about employing nearly half of the American workforce. When small businesses thrive, we all do. We encourage you to celebrate Small Business Week by supporting all of your favorite local establishments!

Economic Development Week is designed to increase an understanding of economic development’s contribution to the region’s business climate, job retention and growth, the tax base and the overall quality of life in our wonderful community of Owensboro, Kentucky.

Not even quite halfway into 2020, this year has proven to be unlike anything we’ve ever seen. Yet the global response from Economic Development Offices to this crisis emphasizes exactly how essential economic developers are.

As we celebrate 2020 Economic Development Week in Kentucky, we want to most importantly recognize the teamwork that goes into generating growth and enhancing high quality economic opportunities for the Greater Owensboro region. Thank you to all of our wonderful partners; together we make Owensboro greater!

Owensboro’s Kentucky BioProcessing (KBP) is taking its potential coronavirus vaccine to the next level. Recently, the company announced that with its implementation of fast-growing tobacco plant technology, animal testing has now begun with the vaccine candidate.

If testing goes well, between one and three million doses of the vaccine could be manufactured per week, starting in June.

According to London-based British American Tobacco (BAT), the method being used by KBP has several advantages over conventional vaccine production. KBP’s potential vaccine is safer because tobacco plants can’t host pathogens, which can cause human disease.

“While it is challenging to respond to a global pandemic quickly when the global community has limited information about its transmission and treatment, it is also very rewarding to utilize our technology to potentially make a difference on such an important, pressing issue,” Barry Bratcher, chief operating officer at KBP said.

Bratcher described Owensboro, where he resides, as a city with a lot to offer, both culturally and economically.

Quarterly reports are sent out to GOEDC investors, partners and supporters to show a brief highlight of what our team has been working on throughout the year.  To view the Q1 2020 Newsletter, click here. 

Highlights from this quarter’s report included 18 visits to business and industries, work with 10 active projects, and a Biz Buzz meeting with plant managers, as well as an industry tour at Domtar-Owensboro Converting and . We also wanted to showcase open office space available in the Commerce Center building. 

The OBKY Local Look segment is our quarterly highlight video of a local company. This quarter’s featured company is Modern Welding. Located in Owensboro for over 85 years now, Modern Welding has evolved into a multi-location company. If you would like your business to be highlighted in the GOEDC OBKY Local Look segment in the future, reach out to Sidney at sriney@owensboro.com. 

Specialty Foods Group (SFG) has donated more than 23,000 pounds of food to various social services and religious organizations in the area. Organizations graciously receiving these donations included the Salvation Army, St. Benedict’s Homeless Shelter, Boulware Mission, the Help Office, the Daniel Pitino Shelter, God’s House of Hope, King’s Table Food Pantry, the Christian Food Bank of Hopkins County and the Senior Community Center of Owensboro-Daviess County. Specific food items donated included hams, sausages, and franks — which are some of the most popular items SFG produces.

As actions to slow the spread of COVID-19 have essentially placed numerous industries on pause, the economic ripple effect has been felt in communities across the country — including Owensboro and the larger tri-state area. As a consequence, social services are seeing their resources stretched thin.

“We recognize the stress this crisis has placed upon many families and organizations in our community, and likewise the need for us to pull together and help each other through this time,” said Eric Sheiss, SFG’s president.

Jerry Moore, an employee at the Daniel Pitino Shelter, which offers housing and meals for those experiencing homelessness, said they’re definitely seeing a spike in visitors. “Our kitchen usually serves between 85 and 100 lunches per day,” he said. “Lately, I’d say we’re averaging about 150, so these food donations are a huge help.”

Owensboro Health and Twin Lakes Regional Medical Center have signed an official letter of intent, an agreement that opens the door for the Leitchfield-based hospital to officially join Owensboro Health later this summer. Once formal terms are reached, Twin Lakes would become the third hospital in the Owensboro Health system, joining Owensboro Health Regional Hospital and Owensboro Health Muhlenberg Community Hospital.

“For both organizations, this is an exciting day that holds tremendous promise for the future of healthcare in our region,” said Greg Strahan, president and CEO of Owensboro Health. “By working together as one system, we can help more people and have a significant impact on the communities we serve, and that is a vision we all share.”

Last August, Twin Lakes announced that it would seek a strategic partnership with another health system that could strengthen its market position, assist with resources and management practices, and enhance the long-term viability of the hospital. Over an eight-month period, Twin Lakes held talks with several potential candidates, ultimately deciding that Owensboro Health was the best fit.

“We approached this process from a position of strength, which has enabled us to select the best possible partner for TLRMC,” said CEO Wayne Meriwether. “This affiliation will provide us with economies of scale and increased access to capital for continued investment in our facilities, technology, and people. Most important, we will be able to move forward with a strong partner who shares our values and our commitment to high quality rural healthcare.”

The letter of intent is the first step toward more a more formalized affiliation agreement, which officials could have in place by late summer. According to Owensboro Health Board Chair Jeff Carpenter, Twin Lakes has a long, distinguished history of serving Grayson County and its surrounding counties: Breckinridge, Ohio, Butler, Edmonson, Hart and Hardin. Adding Twin Lakes, Carpenter said, gives Owensboro Health an opportunity to extend its footprint even further into western Kentucky while strengthening TLRMC’s ability to offer quality healthcare to the Grayson County area.

“With our progress at OHMCH, the growth of our three healthplexes and this new affiliation, Owensboro Health is enjoying tremendous momentum and is well-positioned as a regional healthcare leader. It is an exciting time to be a part of this system, and we look forward to welcoming Twin Lakes into our family.“