Chamber of Commerce Local Business Receives World-Wide Attention With Sustainable Product & Practices
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Chamber of Commerce
January Newsletter 2020
Nominee
Chamber of Commerce
Local Business Receives World-Wide Attention With Sustainable
Product & Practices
Article by Ann Burns, Jackson County Conservation
Based on Main Street in downtown Maquoketa, RagaBabe was started as many mother-owned businesses
are: their founder/owner, Joy Yoder, had a parenting challenge. Her children suffered rashes from
disposable diapers, and the cloth diapers she tried didn’t function as well as she had hoped. She sought a
diaper that would be absorbent, quick to dry, durable, and easy to wash. Joy and her mother, Carol
Ketelsen, went to work in Carol’s basement, and after roughly 300 prototypes, RagaBa was born. Today
almost nine years later, RagaBabe is more than a hometown darling of ours; it is a world-wide brand. It is
a family business in every sense of the word, with Joy’s parents, Carol and Dave Ketelsen, and her
husband and children all playing a role in web design, business management, diaper pattern selection and
creation, and production.
RagaBabe’s core product is a model for sustainability and functionality:
the reusable diaper and waterproof reusable diaper cover are part of
the solution to the 20 billion disposable diapers tossed in landfills each
year. They also compete with bleached disposable paper and plastic
products such as diapers, wipes, facial tissue, and snack bags. Their
products use organic cotton and hemp fabric for the diaper inserts,
and are designed for sensitive skin with no Latex in the elastic for
the covers. RagaBabe recommends to their customers a no perfume,
no dye laundry detergent and line drying for the product. Longer term,
they support the RagaMarket where parents resell diapers and covers
when their kids outgrow them. RagaBabe contributes imperfects to the
program “Days for Girls.”
RagaBabe focuses on local sources for their production materials, and they are looking forward to working
with farmers looking to explore the future Iowa hemp market. Hemp is a desirable crop for sustainability
as it requires little to no pesticides or herbicides to produce. RagaBabe works with a fabric cutter for the
covers in Waterloo that is well-equipped to process hemp materials. In order fulfillment, tickets for orders
are printed on the backs of scrap office paper, and they work to use minimum packaging for product
shipment.
Future Focus Award
Nominee
Chamber of Commerce
Sustainable Practices Make Financial & Ethical Sense for Walmart
Article by Bruce Fisher, Friends of Jackson County Conservation
Adam Kuhle, store manager at Walmart, takes sustainability seriously. Part of that reflects the
overall corporation’s emphasis on sustainability, which includes a goal to be 100% sustainable (in terms of zero
waste). Beyond the company’s clear focus, there is also a sense that Adam takes sustainability personally. His
sense of pride in his store’s efforts toward environmental stewardship is palatable as he shares his 100% rating
on the environmental compliance audit that the store regularly undergoes.
He is quick to show off the company’s exceptional discipline in processing hazardous waste, which surprisingly
goes beyond batteries and chemicals to include cosmetics. All hazardous waste is meticulously packaged and
the shipped to assure appropriate disposal or recycling. There is a commitment that nothing is poured down
the drain but water.
Walmart has a well-designed recycling program that yields
hundreds if not thousands of bales of compacted materials
annually, including all the cardboard, plastic, and Styrofoam
that the store creates. All of this is documented, and the
Walmart accounting system shows that the store generates
tens of thousands of dollars in income from recycling.
In terms of the store’s food business, it is encouraging to know
that spoiled produce, baked goods, and dairy are composted
locally; much of the composted waste is then shipped to an
animal food plant in eastern Iowa.
The store has regularly invested in capital improvements that enable greater sustainability. Just this year, the
store replaced its entire lighting system with LED fixtures and bulbs. Along with dramatically increasing
energy efficiency and offering improved lighting of the store, this investment yields a dramatic return on
investment through lower monthly energy costs and longer life of bulbs.
Adam works to assure that Walmart is a good community member. Indeed, the store has directed numerous
grant dollars to community causes, some of which include conservation and outdoor recreation causes. This
year, the Walmart store provided a $2,000 grant for the bike trail planned north of town to the Hurstville
Interpretive Center. Walmart has also taken a page out of the buy local book. You can find Iowa wines in the
Liquor section, and you can also buy a puzzle created of a well-known Costello painting.
Adam has the data to show that environmental stewardship such as recycling and LED lighting pays, and
financial motivation along with company policy provides rationale for much of the store’s efforts to
sustainability. Still, Adam suggests that motivation runs deeper when he says “ethically, it’s the right thing to
do.”
MaqEvents.com
Chamber
Winter
Gala
Saturday,
January 25
To Register
call 652-4602,
email
cheryl@maquoketachamber.com
or register on
line at
maquoketachamber.com
- events
2019 Year In Review
3rd Public Open House for the Platt Street Reconstruction Project Monday January 20th 4:30 - 6:00 pm City Hall
MaqEvents.com
Jackson County Career & Hiring Fair
1:00 - 2:30 PM Open to Area School Students
2:30 - 6:00 PM Open to the Public
Need assistance with job searches or writing a
resume? The IowaWorks Satellite Office is
available Wednesdays 9 AM until 3:30 PM at
Operation: New View, 904 E. Quarry St. This
office can also assist with writing resumes
and interviewing skills.
Contact Information: 563.652.4549
Send an Email: JacksonCoHiring@gmail.com
Admission is free to the public.
Early Bird Discounted Booth Fees (Before January 17, 2020*):
$50 (Businesses located in Jackson County)
$75 (Businesses outside of Jackson County)
(*After January 17, 2020, the fees increase to $75 in-county and $100 for out-of-county)
SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE!!
The 2020 Jackson County Career & Hiring Fair is a partnership of Jackson County Economic Alliance, IowaWORKS,
Maquoketa Area Chamber of Commerce, Eastern Iowa Community Colleges, and Prosperity Eastern Iowa.
Chamber & Member Activities & More
A Community Book Club about Community
Each month, beginning in January 2020, the HOMETOWN
PRIDE READS book club will reead a different community-
themed book.
Books Selected:
January - The Art of Gather: How We Meet and Why It
Matters, 2018 by Priya Parker
February - Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture
in Crisis, 2018 by J. D. Vance
March - Originals: How Non-Comformists Move the World,
2016 by Adam Grant
April - The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging,
2016 by Charles Vogl
May - The Island of the Colorblind, 1998 by Oliver Sacks
2020 Hike at the
Maquoketa Caves on
January 1st.
A nice crowd attended the
Jackson County Historical
Society's Soup Supper.
Congratulations to
Scott Spalding on his
retirement from
Ruhl & Ruhl Realtors.
We wish him the best.
Congratulations to
Katie Bopes, hired for the
Maquoketa Center Facilitator
at EICCD, Clinton Community
College - Maquoketa Center
To learn more, visit www.limestonebluffsrcd.org or
contact Lori Scovel, Executive Director, at 563-221-
1930
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