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M.B. BARK RECEIVES GOV'T LOANS FOR EXPANDING BUSINESS

AUBURN, MAINE -- M.B. Bark LLC, a bark mulch processor located on 213 acres along Lewiston Junction Road, has secured government loans for expanding the operation of its business. The Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments (AVCOG) and the Lewiston-Auburn Economic Growth Council (LAEGC) each loaned $75,000 to the company.

“The loans allow us to purchase new trailers to transport mulch to markets throughout New England and bring materials such as discarded roof shingles and demolished gypsum board back to Maine for conversion into road building products we produce at our CPRC facility in Scarborough,” said John Adelman, president and CEO of M.B. Bark LLC.

The trailers were purchased at Hale Trailer in Portland. They are Peerless 2005 Open Top Keith Walking Floor Unloading System trailers, which allow materials to be transported without a concern that remnants of prior loads mixing with future loads.

“To grow our business, we need to integrate our various processing facilities into a streamlined system. When we send a truckload of mulch to a southern New England nursery, we need to pick up roof shingles from a municipal transfer station on the return trip. These trailers allow us to accomplish that goal without compromising the quality of our finished product or raw materials,” said Adelman.

AVCOG and LAEGC provided gap financing to supplement the primary lender, Bank of America, for the purchase of five trailers.

“We favor manufacturers that have an import/export component and are diversifying beyond a core product,” said Ken St. Amand, loan portfolio manager, Lewiston-Auburn Economic Growth Council.

M.B. Bark LLC imports raw product from Canada and exports mulch out of state. The company also plans to utilize the Auburn site as part of their larger business of converting demolition and waste materials into usable products for energy production as well as road building.

“The increased activity at the Auburn site creates new jobs for the area. We’re eager to support businesses that have expansion plans,” remarked Robert Thompson, executive director of AVCOG.

M.B. Bark LLC produces more than 100,000 tons of bark mulch each year made from the bark of Hemlock, Spruce and Eastern Cedar trees.

JWA Holdings LLC is the majority owner of M.B. Bark LLC and CPRC Group, which operates a Gibson Road facility in Scarborough as well as the Riverside recycling facility for the city of Portland.