Earth-Kind News

Local Pest Management Professional Climbs Capitol Hill to Tackle Industry Issues

Wed, 07 Mar 2012

LOCAL PEST MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONAL CLIMBS CAPITOL HILL TO TACKLE INDUSTRY ISSUES

February 29, 2012 (Bismarck, ND)– Local pest management professional Kari Warberg Block met with Senator John Hoeven(R); and Congressman Rick Berg (R), all of North Dakota, representing the pest management industry on February 28 in Washington, D.C. During the legislative briefings, Ms. Block heard from former RNC Chair and Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour and Clinton aide and Fox commentator, Dick Morris.

Kari Warberg Block, CEO of Earth-Kind, Bismarck, ND, visited Senator Hoeven, and Representative Berg on Capitol Hill during Legislative Day, an annual event coordinated by the National Pest Management Association (NPMA) that brings together pest management professionals and their legislators to talk about critical issues, such as managing pests in schools and other settings. Earth-Kind is a member of the NPMA, which represents the $6B pest management industry on legislative and regulatory initiatives at the federal and state levels. Earth-Kind was named a 2011 Top 10 Green America People's Choice Award Finalist.

“Discussing issues with federal lawmakers is key to solving issues that affect the entire country,” says Warberg Block. “More importantly, such meetings and interaction give us a chance to address specific issues pertinent to our own community and customers. As a pest management professional and a concerned citizen, I look forward to the chance to make a difference.”

While meeting with Senator Hoeven and Congressman Berg and their staffs, Kari Warberg Block discussed the unintended consequences of new proposed Federal EPA regulation on small business, innovation and entrepreneurship.

The NPMA, a non-profit organization with more than 7,000 members, was established in 1933 to support the pest management industry’s commitment to the protection of public health, food and property - reflected both in the continuing education of the pest control professional and the dissemination of timely information to homeowners and businesses. The NPMA is comprised of pest management companies, distributors and manufacturers. For more information, visit www.npmapestworld.org.

City Chat with Kari Warberg Block, CEO/Farmer in Charge at Earth-Kind

Fri, 24 Feb 2012

Corporate Commitment Innovation for a Kinder Earth: Earth-Kind

Fri, 03 Feb 2012

Corporate Commitment

Innovation for a Kinder Earth: Earth-Kind

By Kari Warberg Block, CEO, Earth-Kind

When I was five, my father drove me the short distance to Staten Island, N.Y., to see Fresh Kills, once the largest landfill in the world. I was absolutely speechless. The nearly two thousand acres of garbage changed my thinking forever. I remember asking him how long it takes shampoo bottles to “go away.” When would they disappear from the landfill? “Not in our lifetime,” my father answered. (The way I ask the question now is, “Why would someone put only one month’s worth of shampoo into a bottle that lasts for thousands of years?”) Fast-forward to my years as a struggling North Dakota farm wife with a mouse problem in my tractor cab. I had pets and small children, so poison was out of the question. No non-toxic rodent repellent existed on the market, so I started researching, experimenting and researching some more. My company’s first “manufacturing” was done by farm wives sitting around my kitchen table.

These days the scenario is quite different. Earth-Kind manufactures all-natural Fresh Cab^® rodent repellent and air fresheners. More than 15,000 retailers sell Fresh Cab^® and love the 90 percent repeat purchase rate. Fresh Cab^® is the only EPA-registered, non-toxic, natural rodent repellent for indoor use. It is the Number One animal repellent on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Bio-Preferred list. Our packaging is biodegradable; our carbon footprint is 2 percent, and we employ people with developmental disabilities to assemble our products.

Earth-Kind grew from a packet of flower seeds to $5 million a year in revenue because, from the beginning, we focused on local sustainability. I didn’t start out wanting much: just to manufacture, market and sell a product that would add value to the world and leave me with at least a nickel out of every dollar after taxes. Since then I’ve developed global aspirations and am working with the U.S. Department of Commerce to get Fresh Cab^® into countries where millions of people are starving. Keeping rodents out of food storage silos and barns will go a long way toward solving that problem – without endangering people, animals or the earth.

Before any entity would consider helping me with my global vision, my company and products needed to be locally sustainable. Here are the best practices – many simple and low-cost – that have helped us build, grow and market our company.

Source Locally

Using local financing, products and labor gives us a high degree of control over quality and a larger positive impact on our community.

• Local Financing. At one point early on there was a demand for Fresh Cab^®, but we needed to ramp-up our production speed. Because I had no collateral, I went to the Bank of North Dakota (the only state-owned bank in the nation) for gap financing. The North Dakota Independent Bankers Association published a story on Earth-Kind because it was apparently innovative to borrow money for balsam fir, corn cobs and the labor of people with disabilities.

For Fresh Cab^® to differentiate itself from alternative solutions and to get noticed on retail shelves, it needed to be registered with the EPA as safe and effective. This was a highly time-consuming, expensive undertaking, and it ultimately cost about $250,000. I had the time but not the money, so I sought and received a farm diversification and value-added grant from the North Dakota Agricultural Products Utilization Commission. The grant helped us become EPA-registered – a necessary step in persuading people there was an effective alternative to poison.

• Local Raw Materials. Earth-Kind’s first manufacturing took place in Stanley, N.D., but eventually we moved our plant to south of the Twin Cities in Minnesota. This put us closer to farm suppliers of raw materials, and it reduced transportation costs and our already minuscule carbon footprint.

• Local Labor. Just as we had done in North Dakota, we hired people with developmental disabilities to assemble and package our products in Minnesota. These employees have a tremendous work ethic, and it makes us happy to work alongside them each day. We partnered with Minnesota’s Epic Enterprise, Inc. to find our employees.

Shared Marketing

Since 1985 North Dakota has had a program called “Pride of Dakota,” an arm of the North Dakota Department of Agriculture. Pride of Dakota does very simple things to help entrepreneurs, home businesses and start-ups. Early on, when I didn’t have a dime, the organization facilitated groups traveling to expos together, rooming together and sharing booth space and other expenses. The cost to the state of North Dakota was small, but this program was just what we needed. Soon, without a huge dollar investment on my part, Fresh Cab^® and our air fresheners were in 250 stores. Over time, as the Pride of Dakota brand came to signify high quality, being a member was even more valuable.

Mentoring: The Most Sustainable Practice

Mentoring is one of the most sustainable human behaviors. It costs nothing, and it spreads knowledge and confidence almost exponentially. The North Dakota Women’s Business Center, part of a network created by the U.S. Small Business Administration, mentored me as I created and grew Earth-Kind. In return, I’ve mentored many other small businesses with sustainable missions.

Simplicity, Not Complexity

Transformational leaders need to model the behaviors we’re trying to cultivate in others. I had to make sure Earth-Kind and its products were sustainable before I could lobby for sustainability with other business owners or government entities.

Sustainability thrives on simplicity and chokes on complexity. To foster sustainability, the entire business community and infrastructure must become simpler, and that means pruning the tangle of complex business taxes, red tape and regulations. Every complication requires additional staff and lawyers the little guys simply can’t afford. And allowing entrepreneurs and start-ups to compete more easily with well-established companies will benefit consumers, businesses of all sizes and the general U.S. economy.

Consumers will benefit from an increase in innovation. For instance, most consumers would prefer to buy “green” products if they’re available – even if they cost a little more than alternatives. If innovation were encouraged, more environmentally friendly products would be available and used.

Simplifying business laws and regulations would also mean businesses of all sizes would be forced to become leaner and adapt more quickly. This is the essence of business sustainability.

And the U.S. economy would benefit because the only thing that can resuscitate it is the creation of a vibrant, sustainable business economy. States that have accomplished this are prospering; states that haven’t are failing. If there were fewer regulations and more programs like those that have helped Earth-Kind, the U.S. economy would quickly refresh itself into what it once was: the benchmark for the rest of the world.

Kari Warberg Block champions innovation and entrepreneurship to support a kinder earth for all. She is a high-energy, strategically aligned, creative professional with more than 15 years of business management, manufacturing, marketing and new product development experience. Block’s zeal for innovation and entrepreneurship has driven her to start many businesses and develop many novel products throughout the years. As a committed servant leader, she keeps her organizational mission clear in the minds of her employees, empowers them to make their good ideas work and provides meaningful jobs for people with disabilities. At heart, Block is a farmer who is passionate about nourishing and growing ideas, businesses and people in a sustainable manner. She has a BS Mgmt. from University of Mary, Bismarck, N.D. and is a certified Master Gardener. Block has spent 18 years as a farm wife in western North Dakota and now lives in Bismarck with her husband Jim. She can be reached at kari@earth-kind.com. For more information on Earth-Kind, go to www.earth-kind.com.

http://www.centerforabetterlife.com/eng/magazine/print_article.lasso?id=276&-session=user_pref:42F9489104e9034602RGOO3DB651

Earth-Kind is Search-Kind, according to the new Web Marketing for Dummies, 3rd edition -News

Mon, 09 Jan 2012

Our company was recently highlighted in the newest edition of the Web Marketing for Dummies as a result of having unbelievable ‘organic’ rankings of our on-line keywords for our business size. Keywords are what consumers type-in to find our type of product through search engines like Google or Yahoo [IE: I have mice – how can I get rid of them?]. The term ‘organic’ means that we earned these keywords free. ( pic to the right)

I’m honored to have been given the ability to share with other small businesses, at no cost to them, (save the price of the book) what we have learned through trial and error, and costly consultants!

It seems hard to believe that we’re on our 6^th website design already, and how technology has advanced since our 1^st website 18 years ago. In the mid-90’s, I recall being one of the pioneering companies in our state to have a website, and one of the first regionally to have an on-line store.

I’ve always been an early adopter of new technology, but only when it makes sense. And a website definitely made sense, even back then! Here’s why:

We could use the website to allow consumers to do research and decide if our product would work for their unique situation. In our category, about 78% of all purchases are researched on-line before the purchase decision.

We could use the website as a way to help national customers find local retailers. Back in 1996, we had to create a system to make this work. This helped us in two ways: 1) If there was not a retailer in an area, we could sell our product to that consumer. 2) If they liked it, they could ask their local retailer to begin to carry our product which helped us build distribution.

We could use the website to share what our products were made from, and what we as people were made from. We have always believed in transparency and knew one day our company’s most valuable currency would be the ‘trust’ that consumers have in our products.

All these years later, it still works the same old fashioned way: Make the best possible product, at the best possible price, with the best possible service. It’s the same on or off the web. There are no short cuts.

I have to admit, it always feels odd when I read about my company in a publication, or see it on TV. But, I’ll always be grateful because my cup filleth every time I hear that someone else benefitted as a result!

Check out the book if you want to improve your web marketing & SEO. It’s a really helpful guide. http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-1118065166.html

Earth-Kind, makers of Fresh Cab rodent repellent, named in top 10 by Green America

Wed, 14 Dec 2011

BISMARCK, N.D., Dec. 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- From a field of more than 5,000 companies, Earth-Kind, located in Bismarck, N.D., has been named one of the Top 10 People's Choice finalists by Green America.

Earth-Kind manufactures Fresh Cab® rodent repellent, the only EPA-registered, nontoxic, natural rodent repellent available for indoor use. The company also makes eco-friendly air fresheners. All Earth-Kind products are biodegradable.

"The 10 People's Choice finalists are great examples of the socially and environmentally responsible business leaders that meet the standards of our Seal of Approval and make it into the National Green Pages™," announced Green America Corporate Responsibility Director Todd Larsen.

Kari Warberg Block, Earth-Kind's founder and CEO, started out years ago trying to keep mice out of her tractor cab in a way that wouldn't harm her small children and pets, the earth—or even the mice. Today, Earth-Kind has a repeat purchase rate of more than 90% and annual retail sales exceeding $5 million through 15,000 retailers across the nation.

"Almost all rodent control products are toxic, yet surveys show that Americans overwhelmingly would like to eliminate rodent problems by using 'green' solutions," Warberg Block says.

"But being 'green' isn't just about being environmentally safe," she adds. "It's about making the very best use of every resource and making the world better in every way we can."

"Making the world better" is Warberg Block's motivation for buying raw components from local farmers. It's why she's partnering with scientists to find "green" ways to eliminate rodents throughout the global food distribution system. And it's the impetus behind her relationship with Minnesota's Epic Enterprise, Inc., to hire people with developmental disabilities to assemble Earth-Kind products.

"Earth-Kind's staff and CEO lead the market in sustainable, environmentally friendly products and practices," says Randy Schwartz, CEO of the Dakota MEP (Manufacturing Extension Partnership). "Kari makes sure that sustainability is built into all their decisions."

"We're a 'big picture' manufacturer," says Warberg Block. "We try to treat the earth, our employees, our retailers, and our consumers with the respect they deserve."

Visit Earth-Kind's Corporate Sustainability report: http://www.greengaintool.org/front/fronts/profile/2183

For more info on Earth-Kind, and it's partnering retailers visit: http://www.earth-kind.com/default.asp

About Green America

Green America is the nation's leading green economy organization, and its Green Business Network™ is the first, largest, and most diverse network of socially and environmentally responsible businesses in the U.S.

Rural Life: My Dad Moved Us to Nowheresville, USA

Fri, 04 Nov 2011

At heart, GRIT Guest Blogger Kari Block is a farmer who is passionate about nourishing and growing ideas, businesses, and people, inside and outside her company Earth-Kind Inc . She is best known for her product innovation, Fresh Cab, which is the No. 1 trusted natural rodent repellent.

It was night when my family first drove into Williston, North Dakota. I could see the small constellation of town lights ahead, surrounded by a vast darkness that made my heart sink.

I was 13 and full of the naïve notion that city life was superior and more “cultured.” Who would actually choose the rural life when they could have shopping, restaurants, and malls just around the corner?

My dad had moved us to Nowheresville, USA. My life would pass me by. North Dakota would smother me and my potential greatness with its vast open spaces – and not one deli in sight.

For six years I suffered under the heavy burdens imposed on me by the prairie. At age 19, I fled Williston to return to the beloved city life I’d missed so much. To my amazement, here’s what I found:

Life was expensive in the city. I needed a roommate to help make ends meet.

I practically lived in my car because I had a 1.5-hour commute each day. At 19, just starting out, I couldn’t afford to live in a safe area of the city.

There were no opportunities for me without the right clothes, right car, and right network of friends in high places.

The brightness was blinding. I didn’t see the stars in the night sky for a year – and was surprised to discover that I missed them.

At 20, I’d had it with the city. I moved back to rural North Dakota and landed a good job by virtue of my character, personality, and skills rather than how I dressed or whom I knew.

Just as important, I got back to star-gazing, fishing, and walking outdoors without fear of being assaulted.

As it turned out, the things I had mistakenly thought made me “cultured” required a price that I wasn’t willing to pay. It's funny how perception changes with age and experience. High population doesn’t necessarily equal a high quality of life. My dad was right after all. (Admitting that was the hardest lesson of all.)

See medical data of rural vs. urban life on a human brain: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2006988/A-rural-life-better-Living-concrete-jungle-really-stressful-make-vulnerable-depression.html.

Read more: http://www.grit.com/blogs/across-the-fence/rural-life-nowheresville-usa.aspx#ixzz1dJkOKSF1

RVr's Guide to Winter Storage

Thu, 03 Nov 2011

With 160,000 RV campgrounds & 7000 Parks to visit, don't let winter mice ruin your summer plans!

Now that winter has arrived, your RV is likely sitting in a covered garage somewhere. And hopefully it's not serving as a winter home for unwanted guests like mice, rats, and squirrels. Rodents are notorious for chewing through vehicle wiring, plastic and rubber lines. They also leave a big mess behind, defecating on countertops, floors, and even in beds. If you haven't taken preventative measures to keep rodents out, you may be in for an unpleasant surprise the next time you take your RV out for a trip.

So, what can you do to protect your RV from rodent damage?

When you're ready to store your RV for the winter, start by inspecting the underside of the vehicle. Look in all corners and crevices, especially where plumbing and wiring enter the RV. If you can see any daylight, mice can get in. Fill any holes or gaps with the strongest caulk.

Remove all food from the RV, even things like flour and sugar that are being stored in airtight containers. A ravenous rodent can do a lot of damage chewing through containers, and even wooden cabinets, to get food. Also be sure the floors and countertops have been well-cleaned so there are no remnants of food about.

If possible try to park or store your RV on a solid surface, like pavement or concrete. Avoid grass, fields, or wooded areas which harbor mice, rats, and squirrels.

If you don't mind the smell of mothballs you can scatter them throughout areas of the RV rodents are likely to hide, feed, congregate or nest in, including storage compartments and the underside. Another option would be to place pouches of Fresh Cab® in strategic locations.

Fresh Cab® is an all-natural blend of plant fiber and essential oils, invented by Kari Warberg Block, a farm wife from North Dakota. "I was offended at the smell of moth balls, and disliked the staleness we found in our Implements in the spring, so I came up with these natural pouches to both freshen & protect our expensive equipment during storage. I first tried mints, but they didn't work that well, or last that long. It took many years to find the best scent to repel all rodents, which was Balsam Fir. It smells like an Alaskan Wilderness, and lasts for months.

During testing Ms. Block discovered that a balsam-fir molecule (the active ingredient in Fresh Cab®) will trigger a limbic response when inhaled by a rodent -causing them to flee the treated area. Independent studies verified it effective 9 out of 10 times, and completely safe to use. EPA #82016

The product comes strongly recommended by members of the Good Sam Club, the world's largest RV owner's association. Tom Freidt, who owns Riverwood RV Sales & Service in Mandan, N.D., has been recommending it for years. "We've had great success with Fresh Cab® around here," he says. "Mice are no longer a problem in the winter time." Other RV testimonials: http://www.earth-kind.com/testimonials/

Fresh Cab made it through the rigorous scrutiny of the Fed.EPA to become the first & only natural rodent repellent proven to be effective. It's sold at all Menards, most National hardware stores & Implement dealers, or Manufacturer website: www.earth-kind.com. There you can place an order, or enter your ZIP code to find the dealer nearest you.

Learn more about the dangers of rodents here: www.earth-kind.com/learn

3 Easy Ways for Sportsmen to Mouse & Rat Proof Hunting Gear

Thu, 27 Oct 2011

BISMARCK, N.D., Oct. 27, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- You paid a fortune for it; Camping gear, hunting gear, fishing gear, boating gear. But between seasons, you need to store it— and that's great news for mice & rats looking for a place to set up winter camp.

They'll honor your generosity, and appreciate the undisturbed environment your hunting gear, sports attire, and remote cabin offers. They'll even leave a gift behind to further aggravate you. You may've even found yourself in the same shoes as Americas original hunting videographers Dan & Guy Fitzgerald: http://www.earth-kind.com/howto/auto-rv-marine/

Mice and rats will find their way in through the tiniest opening of your boats, RV's and ATV's. Every time they leave, they'll drizzle a fresh urine trail so they can sniff their way back home to your engine compartment or inside what used to be your seat.

Mice and rats will shred your soft gear— sleeping bags, life jackets, seat cushions— to make their love nests. Two mice can make 15,000 babies, grandbabies, and great-grandbabies in just one year— in your stuff!

Mice and rats can unknowingly spread diseases to you or your hunting dog. And the poisons traditionally used to control mice and rats can accidentally poison your pedigreed gun dog. Brittany Spaniel gun dog trainer for the stars, Bill Dillon of french-brittany.com shares the dangers of mice & rat poisons to dogs with Woody Mueller at 'Game Fair' 2011 (video at bottom of page): http://www.earth-kind.com/howto/auto-rv-marine/

If you don't mouse & rat proof your cabin, RV, ATV, hunting gear, and dog kennels area, chances are pretty good that you'll have a stinky, chewed up, screwed-up mouse mess come next season.

Here are three safe, easy ways to persuade mice & rats to spend their winter somewhere other than your property:

Clean the gear and the entire storage area. Remove all food that might attract rodents, which usually feed within 20 feet of their nest. Get every one of those sunflower seeds that wound up in the seat cushion, and check all pack pockets for that forgotten sack of trail mix.

Remove any source of water nearby. A tiny water puddle is all mice and rats need to survive. Without a supply of food and water, your battle's almost won.

Finally, place the #1 trusted repellent inside the storage area to drive off freeloading mice and rats who want to live in your cabin, RV or hunting gear. Fresh Cab® botanical rodent repellent is the only proven, EPA-registered rodent repellent created specifically for enclosed spaces. Fresh Cab® is Good Sam Club member-tested and approved for campers, #1 on the USDA animal repellent list, and farmers everywhere rely on Fresh Cab® to store their expensive equipment.

Visit www.earth-kind.com for helpful tips & videos on protecting your outdoor gear with Fresh Cab®, and to find store locations in your area.

University of Mary to Recognize Outstanding Alumni During Homecoming 2011 Event

Wed, 19 Oct 2011

Bismarck, ND - The University of Mary, America's Leadership University, will honor two outstanding alumni at its annual Alumni Recognition Awards and Hall of Fame Induction event, Friday, Oct. 21, 2011. Kari (Warberg) Block, '04, will be presented with the University of Mary Bell Banner Award, and Mike Mabin, '85 & '91, will be recognized with the Harold Schafer Alumni Leadership Award at this year's celebration. The ceremony will take place during Homecoming 2011. There will be a social followed by the dinner and awards ceremony. Attendance at both events is by invitation only.

Kari (Warberg) Block

The University of Mary Bell Banner Award

Kari (Warberg) Block is a 2004 graduate of the University of Mary with a B.S. in management. As the founder and chief executive officer of Earth-Kind, a developer and manufacturer of safe, earth- and people-friendly products, she champions innovation and entrepreneurship. Through her commitment to environmental stewardship, Block helps improve the quality of life for countless others, now and in the future, and models servant leadership in business.

Born in Logan, Utah, in 1963, as a child Block lived in New Jersey, Washington, and Minnesota. Her mother died when Block was 12, leading the family to move to North Dakota. There Block attended Williston High School, graduating in 1981. Growing up with her entrepreneur father, founder of Super-Pumper Inc., even as a teen Block envisioned building a great company. In 1995, she founded Crane Creek Gardens in New Town, ND, which she later incorporated as Earth-Kind, after she felt she "had the education to make it a ‘real' business."

After hearing then U-Mary President Sister Thomas Welder speak, Block -then living in New Town - realized that "a sound education in management with a focus on servant leadership" was what she needed to turn her dream into reality. In September 2000, she enrolled in the university's adult education program, which she credits for providing her with the knowledge, discipline, and inspiration to live her values.

In 2008, Block and Earth-Kind moved to Stanley, ND, and in 2009, to Bismarck, where Earth-Kind is presently headquartered, although its manufacturing plant remains in Faribault, MN.

In addition to being involved in professional, civic, and environmental groups - including the Bismarck-Mandan Chamber of Commerce, Green America, and the Vistage #3133 organization of CEOs, and serving as chair of the Center for Technology and Business and co-chair of Dakota MEP (Manufacturing Extension Partnership) - Block strives to inspire and shape young servant-leader entrepreneurs through a blog she writes on the Earth-Kind Web site. She also has spoken to students in the Harold Schafer Emerging Leaders Academy and at HOBY summer events. In 2010, Block's efforts to provide meaningful employment at Earth-Kind for individuals with developmental disabilities were recognized with the Business Partnership Award from Minnesota nonprofit Epic Enterprise. The same year, she also was named North Dakota and Regional Women's Champion Advocate by the U.S. Small Business Administration and was the regional winner for Working Woman Magazine's Entrepreneurial Award of Excellence for most innovative new product or service, and made Vistage International's "top 3" for most innovative CEO. In 2011, she gave a presentation on small business job creation to the White House Business Council.

Kari is married to Jim Block.

Advice from the Experts - Cleaning a Rodent-Infested Area that May Harbor the Hantavirus

Tue, 18 Oct 2011

What are the recommendations for lessening exposure when cleaning a rodent-infested area that may harbor the Hantavirus?

Use PPE (personal protective equipment)-respirator, gloves and goggles.

Gloves should be rubber, latex, vinyl or nitrile gloves.

Do not stir up dust by vacuuming, sweeping, or any other means.

Thoroughly wet contaminated areas with a bleach solution or household disinfectant.

Hypochlorite (bleach) solution: Mix 1 and ½ cups of household bleach in 1 gallon of water.

Once everything is wetted down, take up contaminated materials-you may want to use damp paper towels-and then mop or sponge the area with bleach solution or household disinfectant.

Spray dead rodents with disinfectant and then double-bag them along with all cleaning materials. Bury, burn, or throw out the rodents in an appropriate waste disposal system.

You may want to contact your local or state health department concerning other appropriate disposal methods.

Disinfect gloves with disinfectant or soap and water before taking them off.

After taking off the clean gloves, thoroughly wash hands with soap and water (or use a waterless alcohol-based hand rub when soap is not available).

Can I use a vacuum with a HEPA filter to clean up rodent-contaminated areas?

HEPA vacuums are not recommended since they blow air around and may create aerosolized particles that may be breathed in.

How do I clean papers, books, and delicate items?

Books, papers, and other items that cannot be cleaned with a liquid disinfectant or thrown away should be left outdoors in the sunlight for several hours or in an indoor area free of rodents for approximately one week before final cleaning. After that time, the virus should no longer be infectious. Wear rubber, latex, or vinyl gloves and wipe the items with a cloth moistened with disinfectant.

Alternatively, wash clothing or stuffed animals in the washing machine using hot water and regular detergent. Laundry detergent can break down the virus's lipid envelope, rendering it harmless. Machine dry laundry on a high setting or hang it to air-dry in the sun.

How do I clean rugs, carpets and upholstered furniture?

Disinfect carpets and upholstered furniture with a disinfectant or with a commercial-grade steam cleaner or shampoo.

What precautions should I take if I think I have been exposed to Hantavirus?

If you have been exposed to rodents or rodent infestations and have symptoms of fever, deep muscle aches, and severe shortness of breath, see your doctor immediately. Inform your doctor of possible rodent exposure so that he/she is alerted to the possibility of rodent-borne diseases, such as HPS.

Reference:

http://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/hps/index.html

Article compliments of National Pest Management Association, of which we are a member.

How to Remove Fear of Rodent Bites and Live an Empowered Life

Mon, 17 Oct 2011

On one hand, a person’s greatest fear isn’t so much the problem in itself as it is the imagination: It is your imagination that implants the many possibilities and impossibilities of both rational and irrational fears into your brain, often blowing up the proportions of a situation beyond what it really is.

However, your fears can be grounded on rational thinking, giving a person a perfectly reasonable basis to be afraid, scared, anxious about something.

Rodents have plagued mankind of centuries, spreading disease, grievous bodily injuries, and generally just being overall pests. In the dark ages, rodents helped to spread one of the worst pandemics in human history, the Black Plague. This disease ravaged Europe, wiping out large amounts of its population in a matter of years, but advances in medical science as well as personal hygiene methods and pest control techniques have made rodents a lesser evil than ever before.

Discover Mother Nature’s Secret to Keeping Mice and Rats OUTSIDE Where They Belong!

Understanding Rodents

More than 10 million people have died from rodent-borne diseases and parasites in the 20th century alone. While they are not considered to be major threats to our everyday health, a fear of rodents is perfectly justified because of the potential of disease and parasite transmission. Rodents make for excellent vehicles harboring rapidly spreading diseases by their nature and design.

Unfortunately, rodents have adapted to living in close proximity to human beings. Rats and their parasites literally share homes with us, nesting and sleeping in the homes which humans come to relax, sleep, and store food and clothing, often without even realizing it. Humans have always been extremely vulnerable to the any pathogens, diseases and parasites carried by rodents.

Rodents carry with them a variety of parasites such as mites and ticks which carry potentially lethal pathogens. If not parasites, then rodents can spread deadly germs and bacteria found in their urine and feces, which is produced in alarming amounts at a time.

Rodents produce hundreds more of fecal matter and urine deposits than humans are capable of in a day.

This excrement can be laid anywhere around your home, place of work, or anywhere else for that matter. The pathogens can also be found in a rodent’s saliva and blood. Rodents also shed hair almost daily, losing their entire coat of hair nearly twice a year. Parasites and deadly pathogens can be found in these hairs and can be harder to spot than excrement.

The Black Death was caused by rodents who sailed along traders and other people in boats. Nowadays, rodents can hitch a ride in our cars, buses, airplanes, and any other vehicle we may depend on everyday. Rodents hitchhike with us, along with their deadly parasites and pathogens, making them capable of going from one end of the globe to the other in the same amount of time it takes humans to travel.

Wherever constant supplies of food and water are readily available, rodents will be able to breed. They also breed in large amounts; some places have recorded almost tens or hundreds of rodents living and moving about in a given place at once. Within these populations are the aforementioned parasites, pathogens and diseases which can spread infection to all living things.

Step 1 – Get Rid of the Rodents

While removing rodents from your home or workplace doesn’t eradicate the core issue behind your fear, wouldn’t you agree this is the best place to start? There are many solutions on the market including traps and poisons but these can be harmful, but here is the problem with these methods.

     • They’re Unreliable: Spring traps often don’t kill rats or mice the first time they snap.

     • They’re Cruel: Glue traps can delay death up to 5 days.

     • They’re Unsafe: Laying down poison is risky business, especially if your kids or pets are around.

     • They’re Unsanitary: All of the traditional methods of killing mice require you to go collect the dead

       rodents and throw them out.

Consider Fresh Cab – a natural solution to eliminate rodents wherever you have them in your house, garage, vehicle or more. Just drop a pouch wherever you have mice or rats and watch them clear out.

     • Safe & Natural: Keep your kids and pets safe. We use 98% bio-based (natural) ingredients like

        natural oils, lavender, fir, cedar, lemon and clary sage. It is the only EPA registered botanical

        rodent repellent for indoor use.

    • Smells Great!: It adds a very pleasant fresh, woodsy scent to your home or business.

     • Added Value: Repels rodents and works as a freshener.

   • Easy to Use: Fresh Cab is National Home and Garden Club endorsed for Ease of Use. Simply

       place the pouches in infested areas to run off the rodents

     • 100% Guaranteed: We offer you an ironclad 100% money back guarantee!

Step 2 – Overcoming Your Fear of Rodent Bites

While the information in this article may have reignited your fears of rodents and their bites, it is important to think rationally and calmly about your situation. The facts can be alarming, but practicing preventive measures as well as steps to overcome irrational fears can make rodents seem like a minor nuisance than the end of the world.

You’re not alone. Known scientifically as musophobia, the fear of mice is common in many people, and even in some animals. A common and proven belief is that elephants are indeed afraid of mice, but even they can be trained to overcome fear.

Stop to think about why you have developed a fear of rats and rat bites. Fears can arise and develop from fictional entertainment such as movies which usually make rodents seem more fearsome than they really are. Take time to learn more about rats on the internet, in a book or in a pet store to see how they are in reality. Rodents are living creatures like cats, dogs, and humans too.

Evaluate your fear of rodents thoroughly. A traumatic experience involving rats which can be embedded deep within you can be tough to break, but you have to ask yourself if the actual danger which rats present to you is real or perceived. A giant, dirty sewer rat that just crawled out of a sewer and across your feet can be a real danger, while a mouse from a pet store or a TV show may cause you to perceive the fear. Rats do, in fact, present some dangers, but modern science and disease prevention has done a lot to prevent any dangers they may present.

A more deep rooted case of musophobia can call for a trip to a therapist. Bad childhood experiences or traumatic events involving rodents can be a tough thing to shake with a lot of people, but thanks to innovations in modern medicine, many varieties of theraputic treatments can be applied to people with a wide variety of phobias and fears, both rational and irrational.

Try to learn more about rodents, as they go beyond the disease harboring street crawler variety. Many people of all ages and walks of life keep and love rodents such as hamsters, guinea pigs, and other species which are disease free. While we don’t want the wild variety in our homes or workplaces, enjoying them (or at least tolerating) in a recreational setting will make for you enjoying a more satisfying and empowered life.

Discover Mother Nature’s Secret to Keeping Mice and Rats OUTSIDE Where They Belong!

3 Tips to Protect Your Classic Car from Mice & Rat Damage

Sat, 01 Oct 2011

If you store your classic car, muscle machine, sportster, collector, or restored summer car over the winter, and think it's protected from mice by being locked in the garage or car shed, think again.

An unused, protected vehicle or car puts up a gigantic "Welcome!" sign for mice and rats looking to come in out of the cold. They'll perform unthinkable acts in unimaginable places, and cleaning up their mess will cost you an unbelievable amount of money.

Rodents party hearty in your classic car

Rats and mice find a million ways to celebrate your generosity.

They'll find their way in under the car hood or through the air duct. Then they'll leave a urine trail so that they can find their way home when they leave. If they're in the ducts, you'll need to replace the entire duct system.

Rodents will shred your vehicle or car headliner or seat cushions to make their nests soft for those romantic evenings and the resultant litters. A mouse couple can create 15,000 babies, grandbabies, and great-grandbabies in one year — in your car's back seat.

Rodents have to constantly gnaw on hard things. If they don't, their teeth grow so uneven that the rodent can't chew and dies malnourished. Mice and rats manicuring their teeth can destroy a vehicle or cars entire wiring harness or computer system overnight.

3 proven ways to drive off mice & rats this winter from your stored classic car

Here are 3 safe, easy ways to persuade those rascally rodents to spend their winter elsewhere.

Clean out the vehicle or car, and the storage building. Remove all food that might attract rodents, which usually feed within 20 feet of their nest. Get every one of those sunflower seeds that wound up under the car seat.

Remove any nearby source of water. Without a supply of food and water near your car, your battle's almost won. See 'resources' for more expert tips at www.keepmiceout.com

Finally, place a proven rodent repellent in the vehicle's cab and trunk and under the car hood to drive away freeloading mice and rats. Fresh Cab™ botanical rodent repellent is the only proven, EPA-registered rodent repellent created specifically for enclosed spaces like a car, tractor, or RV. Fresh Cab™ is Good Sam Club Member-Tested & Approved for campers, and USA farmers have bought more than 4 million Fresh Cab™ rodent repellent pouches to store their expensive equipment over the winter.

Visit www.earth-kind.com for more info on Fresh Cab™ and store locations in your area.

Ridding your place of mice - Without harming your pets

Sat, 01 Oct 2011

There's nothing like discovering a rodent's procession of "gifts" beneath the kitchen sink to let you know the little intruders trespassed at your cabin while you were away. To prevent unwanted rodents from checking into your cabin, try these nontoxic options. The best part? They are totally pet safe.

Electronic zapping traps: These traps can repel - but don't kill - rodents by emitting high frequency sound waves that are completely inaudible to people and pets. But their range is very limited.

Electronic shocking traps: These high-tech systems sense the rodent's presence and release electrical energy that exterminates the pest through a shock.

Nontoxic mice repellents: These substances deter rodents using plant-based and other organic chemicals. Look for products registered by the Environmental Protection Agency, such as Shake-Away or Fresh Cab®.

Peppermint oil: combine two teaspoons of peppermint oil per one cup of water and spray on walls, floors, etc. Though pleasing to humans, the smell of this essential oil acts as a natural deterrent for mice, who find the smell extremely unpleasant.

Erika Olin

8 ways rural retailers profit with rodent category despite stricter FIFRA regulations & greening consumer demand

Thu, 29 Sep 2011

8 ways rural retailers profit with rodent category despite stricter FIFRA regulations & greening consumer demand

By Kari Block, rodent expert, Bismarck, ND

Between a rock and a hard place: that’s where retailers in the home-and-garden or farm-and-ranch sectors are these days when it comes to customers’ rodent problems.

Retailers need to stock effective products that customers want, but the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) restricts rodent control products quickly if the products endanger the environment, animals, or humans.

Retail game-changers

U.S. consumers are becoming eco-conscious and proving it with their retail spending habits.

An overwhelming percentage of adults want the products they use to be safe for the environment. They prefer to eliminate mice, rats, and other pests by using “green” solutions, and are willing to pay more for eco-friendly products.

More than 30% of Americans will eventually have a rodent problem. Most will choose a retail product before hiring an exterminator. And they’ll want that retail product to be both effective and easy to use. Cost is secondary.

The natural products market is growing 22% faster than the toxic products market.

FIFRA determines what’s on retail shelves

It’s a mouthful: the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide ACT (FIFRA). The EPA considers rodents a public health risk pest, and rodent repellents, whether they’re traditional or natural, must be registered federally and in every state in which they will be sold. To be federally registered by the EPA, a product must be at least 50%-60% effective and have gone through extensive—and expensive—product safety testing for human, animal, and environmental safety.

Many states follow the EPA’s lead. If the Federal EPA hasn’t registered a rodent control product as being effective and safe for the control of mice & rats, those states will refuse to allow the product to be sold.

The first EPA-registered rodent repellent

Fresh Cab™ by Earth-Kind® was the first botanical rodent repellent that actually worked. The EPA was so stunned by Fresh Cab’s effectiveness that it required three separate independent tests before it would register the product. Since its registration in 2007, Fresh Cab™ has been the only natural rodent repellent EPA-approved for indoor and enclosed spaces. It’s also the #1 animal repellent on the U.S. Department of Agriculture bio-preferred list.

Other companies have since entered the market. Bonide® makes Mouse Magic™, but the two products are very different. Mouse Magic™ is exempt from EPA registration because its substances are considered safe (non-poison). However, because it hasn’t been Federal EPA-tested & reviewed for either safety or effectiveness, many states don’t allow retailers to sell Mouse Magic™.

Fresh Cab™ also contains only natural, safe ingredients that would exempt it from EPA testing—but Earth-Kind® nonetheless pursued that testing and registration 51 separate times to dissuade the perception that natural repellents are nothing more than snake oil. Fresh Cab’s balsam fir pouches are EPA-registered federally and in all 50 states, and set the standard for cost vs. benefit in the retail natural repellent category, validating that even the thriftiest of consumers –like farmers- will pay more for a product they know works.

8 things rural retailers could teach the rest

Rural retailers are experts at solving mice & rat problems because every rural customer has, at some time, had a severe rodent problem.

In addition, rural retailers live and die by their customer relationships. If they give bad advice, they’ll hear about it at the coffee shop or high school football game.

Tractor Supply Company® (TSC®) is a superb example of the best in rural retailing.

Experts attract loyal customers, and every TSC® store has a resident horse expert, welding expert, and fence expert.

The TSC® website is well-organized and full of helpful advice on any subject a rural customer might need.

Customers can get a handy online price-check for their local store.

And best of all, TSC® works closely with manufacturers, which keeps prices down.

In the area of rodent control, here’s how a rural retailer might profit in spite of changing consumer demands and unforeseen regulations.

Become the local rodent control expert. Research to find out which products actually work, or ask an expert exterminator.http://www.asktheexterminator.com/video/Rodent_Repellent.shtml

Use retailer-friendly manufacturers. Let them do some of the work for you. Fresh Cab™ has a web site and Facebook page full of user information, and there’s a toll-free help number on the package. http://www.facebook.com/freshcab

Stock several options. After you research, stock every product that works. The more options you can offer customers, the happier everyone will be. http://www.earth-kind.com/Resources/Article28/tabid/452/Default.aspx

Define the problem. Ask the customer how widespread the rodent problem is and what has already been tried. Fresh Cab™ can protect anything in an enclosed area from being chewed on, poo-ed on, or woo-ed on by rodents. (Yes, woo-ed on: one mouse couple can produce up to 15,000 little mice in a year.)

Suggest a strategy. See www.earth-kind.com/resources for consumer-focused, step-by-step rodent relocation plans.

Give ‘em a sample. Many rural retailers give away pouches of Fresh Cab™ to loyal customers. Fresh Cab™offers a 100% money-back guarantee, but with more than 4 million Fresh Cab™ pouches sold, the return rate is less than 1%.

Suggest necessary add-ons. To permanently solve the problem, the customer may need add-on rodent control products such as steel wool, caulking, and wire mesh attic and dryer vents.

Keep building relationships. Follow up with your customers and ask if their problem was solved. It’s surprising how many retailers neglect this step.

Kari Block is a rodent expert, innovation engineer, and CEO of Earth-Kind®, which manufactures Fresh Cab™ botanical rodent repellent.

NYT: Moths and Mice: It’s You or Them

Wed, 08 Jun 2011

Visit New York Times Article

Moths and Mice: It’s You or Them

By BOB TEDESCHI

FIFTEEN years ago the crawl space of my previous home became the site of a turf war between skunks and rats. When the stench subsided, huge flies sprang from the rat carcasses and into the house.

It could have been worse. At least we weren’t scared for our lives. A friend recently told me that she once pulled open her dishwasher to find an enormous black snake staring at her. She returned the dishwasher door to its closed position and, somehow, remained standing. Later, she and her husband found an identical snake dead in the road in front of their house.

The story put my rat war into perspective, but it also gave me an idea for ending the turf battle in my current home, between myself and mice.

Why not a pet snake?

Before inflicting that idea on my wife, I called on three people with, presumably, more conventional suggestions for mouse combat. I also asked their counsel on how to stop other common food-seeking pests — moths — from invading my kitchen every few months.

My advisers were Bob Young, an operations manager for Terminix, the pest control company; Andrew Lopez, owner of the Invisible Gardener, an online organic pest control firm; and Travis Poore, a garden specialist at Home Depot.

Their advice: Neither problem is hard to solve if you react quickly, spend $20 on the right items, and follow the proper steps. If you want to avoid killing anything, you will pay a good-karma premium, but you can still succeed. If you don’t act fast, you will need to spend much more on an exterminator.

Or a hungry snake.

Let’s start with moths, because they’re easier.

Mr. Young said the typical kitchen plays host to two types — the Indian meal moth and the Mediterranean flour moth — and they are in your kitchen because you put them there. You buy them at the grocery store, you drive them home, and you deposit them in your cupboards.

They’re not moths at this point, but rather moth eggs, carried as stowaways in boxes of pasta, flour and grains. When they reach your cabinets, they hatch and reproduce.

If you want to get rid of many or most of them, regularly pour your pasta, flour, cereals and grains into sealable containers, and throw away the packages that are often the sites of the eggs. There still may be moths, but far fewer than otherwise.

My wife has adopted a different strategy. Since we are either too disorganized or too lazy to systematically transfer our food to sealable containers, we accept the fact that the eggs will hatch. Then we put a pheromone-based trap (I used Safer’s Pantry Pest, about $10 for 2) in the pantry. It attracts the moths as soon as they hatch, they die before they can lay more eggs, and we’re fine until the next stowaways arrive.

Mice are more complicated.

Once you have discovered mouse droppings, don’t rush into warrior mode. Instead, employ a little wishful thinking, and consider the possibility that the droppings may be years old. Decades, even.

Thoroughly clean the area with disinfectant.

Next, during daylight hours, head to the basement and look for cracks of outside light. Imagine, above each crack, a little “Welcome Mice” sign. When you are done, check other likely areas in the house for entry cracks, like back doors or, in apartments, common walls.

Then take a really good flashlight (Dorcy’s L.E.D. is about $8), and scour the basement as well as the rest of the house for droppings or nests. Clean all the areas you find, again with disinfectant, wait a day or so, and return. If you have led a righteous life the areas will be pristine, and you can skip to the step of sealing the cracks.

If you have atoning to do, like me, you will find more droppings. Perhaps the droppings will be closer to a half-inch long, and you will have to prepare for a rat battle. If they are a quarter-inch or less, though, they are only mice droppings. Count your blessings — and don’t worry about counting the mice.

“You’d go after one just like you’d go after a dozen,” Mr. Poore said. “And always assume you have more than you want to have, because they reproduce very quickly.”

If you are not troubled at the idea of killing mice, buy some snap traps (Victor brand, $2 for 2, are common). Set at least one trap in every place you found droppings. Mr. Poore and Mr. Young both prefer peanut butter for bait (Jif 18-ounce jar, about $3), since the smell lingers longer than that of cheese.

Hardware store employees will show you how to set the trap, but it’s worth practicing, with two simple rules in mind. Place the bait before you set the trap, and once it’s set, handle it from the side that is opposite the bait. Your fingers will thank you.

Set and reset the traps for a few days at least. Sometimes the bait vanishes, because the mouse isn’t big enough yet to trigger the trap. Keep feeding it.

If you kill a mouse, dispose of it in a tightly closed plastic bag to keep flies away.

If the baited traps are untouched for a few days and no droppings remain, your work is done. But if the traps are untouched and there are still droppings, then the remaining mice are avoiding or ignoring the bait.

At this point, poisons are an option, Mr. Young said. (But not in homes with pets, he added, since they might eat the poison or the poisoned rodents. And in homes with children, he said, poisons with tamper-proof packaging should be used.)

Mr. Poore pointed out that poisons can be especially good since they are now made to quickly dry carcasses and prevent rotting smells (d-Con Mouse Prufe, about $2 for 1.5 ounces).

We have pets, so poison was not an option. We also have children who want to name and nurture every animal they come in contact with, so for years we tried “live” mousetraps — baited little rectangular compartments with trapdoors. They rarely worked, and when they did, we needed to drive the mouse to some faraway place, then spend a few ugly minutes at home cleaning the trap.

A far better alternative for no-kill practitioners, Mr. Lopez said, is to get inside the head of your mice. Just as you might use a Beethoven sonata to rid an area of teenage ne’er-do-wells, Mr. Lopez uses an electronic device that emits a sound that mice hate, but people cannot hear.

Cost is the big drawback. The Pest Repeller Ultimate AT, for instance, costs about $50, and the maker, Good Life, suggests placing at least one on every floor of your home.

A cheaper option is to stink them into submission.

My local hardware store sells pine-scented packages that promise to keep mice away (Fresh Cab’s Botanical Rodent Repellent, about $16 for 4 packages). The Web site GrandmasHomeRemedies.com includes testimonials from those who swear by peppermint oil. (The section on “Getting Rid of Mice” is a good resource.)

Mr. Lopez recommended spraying diluted citrus oil. “Just lightly, though,” he said. “Whatever you smell, the creatures will smell it 10,000 times more.”

Once you have killed, relocated or chased away the mice with sound or smell, it is time to seal things up. Mr. Young said small mice can squeeze through cracks that are pencil thin, while the adults can wriggle through dime-size holes.

The quickest and cleanest plug is steel wool (Rhodes American, $4.50 for 12), which is difficult for mice to chew. If you run out of steel wool and have an extra tube of caulk, that works, too.

To deter future mouse incursions, Mr. Lopez suggested buying a female cat, which, he said, hunts more avidly than does a male. I’ve got a female cat, but she spends nights — prime time for mice — in the basement, where her high-volume meowing can’t awaken the house.

The mice clearly understood our arrangement. They ceded the basement to the feline, but claimed the kitchen and our upstairs walls.

Roughly two weeks of snap traps seem to have turned the tide. (I counted at least five or six dead mice.) The Pest Repeller and the pine-scented pouches may have also helped.

If, somehow, mice make their way through the steel wool, through the pine scent, through the ear-piercing whistle, back to my kitchen, it may be time for the nuclear option.

Crazy? Maybe not.

“I’ve got a friend who had a snake in the attic,” Mr. Poore said. “And he didn’t have any problems.”

Don't Let Rodents Destroy Your Outdoor Fun, Control them the Natural Way this Earth Day

Tue, 19 Apr 2011

Bismarck, ND

Ahh—April. It’s Earth Month and also National Pest Management Month, which together bring to mind mice and rats, the most destructive, annoying creatures on Planet Earth.

Rodents do hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of damage in the U.S. every year.

They shred wire, plastic, fabric, and wood.

They can infect humans and pets with 60 known diseases.

One amorous mouse couple can result in 15,000 new mice each year.

Mice and rats come uninvited and then wreak havoc. Is there a way to get rid of them without killing them?

Peppermint doesn’t work

Earth-Kind founder Kari Warberg Block was a farm wife with a mouse infestation in her tractor cab. Poison was out of the question. Peppermint didn’t work. Dryer static sheets didn’t work. Nothing worked.

Warberg Block didn’t want to have to pick up little mouse corpses; she just wanted the mice to go away. There was no natural rodent repellent on the market, so she invented one: Fresh Cab™, an all-natural rodent repellent for use in enclosed spaces. Fresh Cab contains nothing but ground corn cobs, great-smelling floral and citrus oils, and the magic ingredient: balsam fir oil, which rodents hate and humans enjoy.

Warberg Block has the following advice for un-inviting mice and rats to your enjoyable spring and summer activities.

Keep rodents out of your garden shed

“The joy of getting your hands dirty gardening shouldn’t have to include dealing with rodent messes,” she says. “And if you’re an organic gardener, you certainly don’t want to use poisons.”

Earth-Kind is a member of the National Home Gardening Club, which has member-tested and member-approved Fresh Cab™ Rodent Repellent for use in keeping garden sheds and garages free of mice and rats.

Don’t invite rodents to camp with you

“As a camper, the last thing I want is mouse dung in my sleeping bag or mice in the stored food,” Warberg Block says. The Good Sam Club—the world’s largest RV organization—has member-tested and approved Fresh Cab™ for keeping pesky rodents out of campers, RVs, food pantries, and stored camping gear and clothing.

And let’s not forget man’s best friend. To prevent your favorite four-legged camping buddy from eating harmful poisons or disease-carrying rodents, just stick a Fresh Cab™ pouch in enclosed places where mice might hang out.

Fresh Cab™ is the only natural rodent repellent registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency nationally and in all 50 states as safe and effective in enclosed areas. Find it at retailers across the country, or visit www.earth-kind.com.

Expert Advice on Natural Rodent Control in this 'Year of the Mouse'

Tue, 04 Jan 2011

A snowy winter in the northern states and torrential rains on the west coast have already turned 2011 into the "Year of the Mouse" as rodent populations climb and concerned homeowners scramble for sustainable solutions.

Rodents are not just a nuisance. They are known to carry over 35 diseases, including Hantavirus and Lyme disease. Rodents cause property damage by shredding materials and chewing electrical wires. Rodents are to blame for 8% of all U.S. building fires, gnawing wires and causing electrical shorts. Worst of all, with a 21-day gestation, one mouse "couple" can create up to 15,000 mice in one year.

"It's all about eliminating their ability to smell danger," states Kari Warberg Block, rodent expert and inventor of Fresh Cab®, the natural rodent repellent and only natural product registered by the Federal EPA for indoor use. "Mice can only see a few inches, so their sense of smell is their defense. Fresh Cab natural rodent repellent blocks their sense of smell with natural Balsam Fir oil." She reminds frustrated homeowners to "think like a rodent" when going to battle.

Three ways to outsmart rodents:

Block entry: Rodents can squeeze through a quarter-inch hole (the size of a pencil eraser!) Fill all cracks and small holes. Then place Fresh Cab pouches near these spots.

Eliminate food sources: Keep all food in closed containers-don't forget about pet food, too.

Make them want to leave: Place Fresh Cab scented pouches anywhere rodents might inhabit (attic, basement, garage, storage sheds, etc) to force them out and discourage future rodents from entering.

The real plus of a Fresh Cab natural rodent repellent, according to Warberg Block, is "You eliminate the rodent problem without using dangerous mouse traps and rat poisons. This is particularly important in areas near kids or pets." Kari adds, "When buying a natural solution, always check the label. If it says Federal EPA Registered, its safety and efficacy have been stringently proven. Also look for a money back guarantee and 800# to call."

About Earth-Kind, Inc.

Bismarck based Earth-Kind, Inc. manufactures natural solutions for nature's problems. The company's manufacturing plant employs developmentally disabled individuals for product assembly. Its products are distributed through 15,000 national retail locations. For more information, visit www.earth-kind.com

Can Sustainability Be Sustainable? For One Resourceful Earth-Kind Entrepreneur the Answer is Yes!

Fri, 10 Dec 2010

By Theresa Trocke, CPG/Retail Consultant

BISMARCK, N.D., Dec. 21, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Earth-Kind, Inc.'s Kari Warberg Block set out to solve a natural problem in a natural way. She not only succeeded, but found a sustainable path for her products and company. Today, Fresh Cab® rodent repellent is the only indoor, EPA registered, natural rodent repellent available.

Warberg Block, who calls herself the "Farmer in Charge," has built a business with annual sales of $2 million through national distribution in hardware and farm and home channels. As the company grows, the challenge will be maintaining the sustainability platform. Kari sees sustainability as more than a green way of thinking as her company illustrates: ingredients from local farmers and package assembly by individuals with developmental disabilities through a partnership with Epic Enterprises, Inc. The Earth-Kind team was recently presented with the Epic Business Partnership Award in recognition for their special efforts to help job-site workers experience independence within their workday.

"For each aspect of our business, I ask myself what is the best use of every possible resource from the ground up," says Kari. She is passionate that her way of doing business benefits retailers. "It's a sustainable model because it works for both of us."

Earth-Kind's Fresh Cab® has a 90%+ repeat purchase rate, adding value for retailers as it cultivates a loyal consumer base looking for natural alternatives to poisons, baits and traps. Innovation and building economic stability for her company, employees and community is core to Warberg Block as illustrated by her recent recognition as a finalist in the first annual Vistage International Member Leadership Awards.

Kari was recognized as one of three worldwide finalists in the innovation category. As an innovation finalist, the company leader must have taken on difficult problems or challenged assumptions to innovate or transform a business strategy, product and/or process that created significant business growth.

Kari is committed to creating natural, safe and effective products that have a positive impact on agriculture, society and the environment, a formula that will continue to prove sustainable.

About Earth-Kind, Inc.

Bismarck based Earth-Kind, Inc. manufactures and distributes natural solutions for nature's problems. The company's manufacturing plant employs developmentally disabled individuals for product assembly. Its products are distributed through more than 15,000 National retail locations. For more information, visit www.earth-kind.com

Earth-Kind CEO Recognized for Social Responsibility and Innovation

Sun, 05 Dec 2010

BISMARCK, December 5, 2010 -   Earth-Kind, Inc. was awarded the Business Partnership Award from Minnesota nonprofit Epic Enterprise at its annual celebration to recognize area business leaders who partner with Epic to help individuals with developmental disabilities actively participate in the community.

The Business Partnership Award recognizes the special efforts by an area business to help job-site workers experience independence within their workday.   Kari Warberg Block, Earth-Kind CEO and Troy Flaten, Plant Manager accepted the award.    The Earth-Kind team was acknowledged for its close working partnership with Epic focused on providing meaningful, quality employment to people who love their jobs and the contribution they make to Earth-Kind’s success.

“We have been partnering with Epic for three years and are proud to have these fine citizens be a part of our product manufacturing process” said Kari. Linda Hibbard, Epic Executive Director added “Kari and the Earth-Kind team are a delightful example of our business partnerships: a business and people with disabilities, working together, for mutual success.”

Warberg Block’s success as an entrepreneur and product developer were also recently recognized as she was named a finalist in the first annual Vistage International Member Leadership Awards at the National Chief Executive Conference held in November.

Kari was recognized as one of three worldwide finalists in the innovation category. As an innovation finalist, the company leader must have taken on difficult problems or challenged assumptions to innovate or transform a business strategy, product and/or process that created significant business growth.   Kari, a member of Vistage International since 2007, is the inventor of the first natural rodent repellent registered for indoor use by the EPA. Fresh Cab® natural rodent repellent eliminates the need for poisons, baits and traps when dealing with rodent issues.

“Kari is committed to creating natural safe and effective products that have a positive impact on agriculture, society and the environment,” stated Jon Jennings, Vistage 3133 chair, who nominated Kari for the honor. Today, her company Earth-Kind, Inc. manufactures and distributes the Fresh Cab product and natural air purifiers nationally.

About Earth-Kind, Inc.

Bismarck based Earth-Kind, Inc. manufactures and distributes natural solutions for nature’s problems. Its flagship product, Fresh Cab® rodent repellent, is e the only EPA indoor-use registered natural rodent repellent.   The company’s manufacturing plant is located in Faribault, Minnesota and employs developmentally disabled individuals for product assembly. Its products are distributed through more than 10,000 national retail locations. For more information, visit www.earth-kind.com

About Epic Enterprise, Inc.

A nonprofit agency based in Dundas, MN serving the Southern Minnesota area, Epic Enterprise, Inc. strives to provide opportunities for people with disabilities to more actively participate in the broader community. For more information, contact Linda Hibbard, Executive Director, 507.645.6800

About Vistage International

Founded in 1957, Vistage International, Inc., headquartered in San Diego, California, is the world’s leading chief executive organization, serving more than14,000 members in 15 countries. Vistage member CEO’s participate in chair-led advisory board peer groups, receive one-to-one coaching, learn from expert speakers, and connect online and in person with a global network of CEOs from a broad range of industries. For more information, visit http://www.vistage.comMEDIA

MEDIA CONTACT:

Kari Warberg Block

Earth-Kind, Inc. Founder / CEO

1.800.583.2921 or 701.721.4839

Avoid Toxic Pest Poisons in Home and Yard - Get Rid of Rodents, Rats, Mice While You Keep Pets Safe

Thu, 07 Oct 2010

How can you keep rodents out of your home without the risk of poisoning your pet?

As the days grow cooler, friendly neighborhood rats and mice start moving into your space. Any rodent infestation you had during the summer will soon become worse.

You´ve got to take action, and fast. One pair of mice can create 15,000 more mice in just one year. Rodents destroy buildings from the inside out by chewing doors, insulation, electrical wires, and even plumbing. Rats and mice start eight percent of all household electrical fires. And rodents spread 35 known diseases, including Lyme disease and the sometimes-fatal Hanta virus.

You want them gone—but is poison the only effective solution?

Wanted: pet-safe, green, effective rodent control

"Sometimes you´ve just got to invent what you need," says Kari Warberg Block. She had a mouse problem and wanted an effective rodent control solution that was also earth-friendly and safe for her pets. She read everything she could get her hands on and tried everything she read or was told might repel rodents: moth balls, dryer static sheets, even mint. Nothing worked.

Warberg Block, an avid environmentalist and animal lover, didn´t want to risk hurting her pets, so poisons and traps were out of the question. Pets may eat poisoned bait and die a long, agonizing death. Even if your pet doesn´t sample the bait, it may eat a poisoned rat or mouse. Or it may be bitten by a rodent carrying one of those 35 communicable diseases. And if your pet lives through the ordeal, it may have permanent kidney damage and you may have a huge vet bill. (For more about the dangers of rodent poison and pets, click to see this short video).

The safest, best solution is to simply persuade rodents to leave. No existing product did that, so Warberg Block had to invent one.

All-natural product makes rodents run away

"I really didn´t want to have to pick up the little carcasses that result from using traps or poisoned bait. I just wanted the mice and rats to go away quietly," says Warberg Block.

After years of trial and error, she discovered that rodents absolutely detest the fresh, clean odor of balsam fir oil. It interferes with their sense of smell, and they count on their sense of smell to warn them of danger. Knowing that their noses have been compromised makes rodents very uncomfortable, and their only option is to flee.

From what she learned, Warberg Block´s company, Earth-Kind, Inc., developed Fresh Cab® rodent repellent. It´s made from all-natural ingredients: ground corn cobs and essential oils of lavender, Spanish rosemary, cedar, lemon, orange, and balsam fir.

The only EPA-registered rodent repellent

Fresh Cab is the only rodent repellent registered by the EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) as certified for use indoors and in enclosed areas. Placed strategically where rodents are apt to enter, live, eat, or breed, Fresh Cab drives them out but contains nothing harmful and doesn´t seem to interest pets at all.

Word-of-mouth advertising and a 90% repeat purchase rate by amazed users have helped Fresh Cab sales soar.

Earth-Kind offers free tips for keeping Mickey and Minnie out of your space, as well as advice for strategically placing Fresh Cab pouches in your home or business for best results. Just visit www.earth-kind.com.

Death from Probable Hantavirus Now Confirmed

Tue, 17 Aug 2010

For Immediate release

On Thursday, August 12, the Mono County Health Department sent out a Mono-Gram alerting the public of a death from suspected hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS). A person had presented to Mammoth Hospital earlier that day in respiratory distress after being sick with flu-like symptoms for 4 days. He was airlifted to Renown Medical Center in Reno, but died shortly thereafter.

Today we received word that tests performed by both the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Viral and Rickettsial Diseases Laboratory and the Nevada State Public Health Laboratory were positive for hantavirus.

The 61 year old male, Richard Laird Johnson (known as “Laird”), a resident of Redding, California, was working as a seasonal employee at Bodie State Park. He reportedly worked at the front desk of the visitor’s center/museum and had no official custodial or maintenance duties. He resided in his personal motorhome that was parked on site.

An investigation of this confirmed HCPS case will be initiated. The Mono County Health Department will lead the investigation with assistance from CDPH Vector-Borne Disease Section (VBDS). Because of the possibility that exposure occurred in an occupational setting, CDPH Occupational Health Branch and CalOSHA will work with VBDS and Mono County on the investigation.

Preventive information for the public and park staff had been delivered earlier in the season, and will be reinforced during this period of investigation.

For further information, go to:

Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

California Department of Public Health:

New Brochure: Rodents and Hantavirus

Mono County Health Department

5 ways to be a ‘Green Champion’ for your retail customers- by ‘green’ product development champion

Sat, 17 Jul 2010

More Info Click Here www.earth-kind.com

Slowly the US is moving toward a smaller carbon footprint, and new research points to a growing consumer desire to seek out retailers who sell products and services that are kinder to people, pets, and the environment. Understanding these consumer´s motivations can benefit a retailer´s bottom line, says Kari Warberg Block, Product Development Expert, and CEO of Earth-Kind, Inc the manufacturers of the first ´green´ rodent repellent registered by the Federal EPA.

With rising energy costs, the current economic climate, and more publicity on natural health alternatives than ever before, Consumer preferences have undergone a major shift reflecting a greater concern for the environment, for value, and for health. Nearly 50% of respondents surveyed by Mintel Research indicated that they are purchasing more organic products than before the recession.

As a manufacturer of natural pest control we see this same trend. In fact, green growth has risen to the top of the agenda for many businesses, from 2007-2009 eco-friendly product launches increased by more than 500%. A recent IBM survey found that two-thirds of executives see sustainability as a revenue driver and half of them are working on green initiatives to give them a competitive advantage.

What drives the ´green´ consumers purchasing decision?

They want to feel intelligent and informed - not only at the point of purchase, but they want to sustain that feeling at home. Suprisingly, when surveyed, here is what drives the green consumer to being green: Breast cancer (68%); Education (62%) Children´s Welfare (60%); environment destruction (57%); and poverty (50%); [Mintel US Green Market 2008] many of us support these same causes, but do we let our customers know?

Accordng to Mintel the Green consumer is influential; optimistic, politically more liberal, and interested in living a healthy lifestyle. The vast majorities, (86%) of respondents are not willing to go out of their way to buy green products, and will buy more if they are easily available. Ask yourself where in your neighborhood this fast growing segment will shop. 85% of these consumers decide on what they will purchase before going to a retailer according to Mintel. Do your manufacturers have an active presence on-line, or do you?

Is there any wonder why the worlds leading retailer is leading a green charge?

What can you do as a retailer to grow your sales to ´green´ consumer?

1) Watch the leaders-

• Set up google alerts to stay on top of trends and consumer behavior in your retail industry. Watch what your closest competitors are doing and saying.

• Join Trade associations that dedicate a portion of their resources to the green education. Many times the articles are written by the leaders in product categories (such as this article).

2) Educate your employees-

• Hold weekly employee ´walk-throughs´ before store opening to introduce new products and share the best sellers, and highlight relevant information to share with your customers. You´ll be amazed at how a little effort goes a long way to empower employees! Conscious consumers are attracted like magnets to retailers who take the time to educate their employees.

• Pick employees at random each week to lead a portion of the´ walk-through´. It will empower them to look for any edge they can get to stand out on their next walk through. This also spreads a culture of ´champions´.

3) Never compromise price for quality-

• Once you decide to win on price, rather than value, you exempt the most loyal customer base from shopping at your stores. Loss leaders help you serve both, but realistically, you can´t be both. Can you beat the retail leader on price? If not, win their customers for life on value.

• Green consumers are more willing to change their shopping behavior by avoiding a bad company (53%) as opposed to supporting a ´good company´ (37%). Pain still matters at the point of a buying decision. Look for products, like Fresh Cab rodent repellent, that share the startling facts at the POP retail level. Knowledge is power!

• Look for vendors that have third party certifications that insure good stewardship, IE: OMRI, USDA BEES, Good Guide, Green Seal. Check the BBB, and D&B ratings for extra assurance. Customers have been known to sue a retailer who sacrifices quality for low price and someone gets hurt.

4) Hire smart rather than manage tough-

• According to Mintel, people aged 18-24 get ´green´ more than any other age. Make them the ´green´ champions in your stores and watch the energy rise.

• Hire people who love to be experts, and love to help people save money, and live better. There is ´good´ reason a retail leader would choose to use this as their tag line!

5) Attention goes where energy flows!

• Write ´helpful hints and tips ´articles for your local paper, and give it a green focus.

• Establish a blog or face book fan page so you can let people in your shopping areas know about all the great things you have in your stores. Highlight your vendors, your co-ops recycling program, your customers´ success stories, or just share your customers best ´save money´ tips.

It´s clear from the research that ´green´ is growing, and growing fast. As a manufacturer of the first and only indoor Federal EPA registered natural rodent repellent, we offer a monthly newsletter on all things we find of ´value´ that may help our retail partners continue to prosper in these fast changing times. Send us your e-mail and we´ll sign you up: info@earth-kind.com; or visit www.earth-kind.com and sign up.

The Fresh Cab® Story: Determined Entrepreneur Wins EPA Registration for Natural Rodent Repellent

Wed, 09 Jun 2010

Let´s say you have a rodent control problem: mice in the attic or rats in the garden shed. You´d prefer not to have this problem. You´re looking for a natural rodent control product that works safely, effectively, and inexpensively. And you discover Fresh Cab® Original Mouse Pouch, a natural rodent repellent—in fact, the only natural rodent repellent registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (For more information about the importance of EPA registration, visit www.earth-kind.com.)

You´re probably impressed by that EPA registration number on the front label—and you should be. It´s the federal government´s guarantee that Fresh Cab® not only works to control rodents but does it without posing any danger to pets, children, or the environment. Safe rodent control: it´s the only kind you´d use, right?

The real story, however, is the hard work, financial cost, and bureaucratic trials and tribulations Fresh Cab® ´s inventor had to go through to register her product.

Farmer with a rodent control problem

Kari Warberg Block is the founder and CEO of Earth Kind, the North Dakota company that manufactures Fresh Cab®. In the early 1990s, mice and rats invaded her stored farm equipment. She tried all the usual methods to control rodents, but the only thing that prevented nesting was moth balls, which are toxic. Warberg Block had small children and family pets, and she´s something of an environmentalist. She wanted safe rodent control.

Over the next eight years, she learned everything she could about rodents and rodent control methods. Eventually, she discovered an aroma molecule in balsam fir oil that repels rats and mice. It blocks them from smelling danger; they panic and get as far away from it as possible. Warberg Block created, patented, and trademarked Fresh Cab® Original Mouse Pouch, a fresh-smelling, orange-sized "potpourri sachet" filled with ground corn cobs soaked in botanical oils: balsam fir (of course) and cedar, lavender, Spanish rosemary, lemon, and orange.

With the help of a grant from the N.D. Department of Commerce´s Agricultural Products Utilization Commission, Warberg Block marketed Fresh Cab® to implement dealers. They loved it, and she soon hired four employees to manufacture Fresh Cab® at her kitchen table. She joined Pride of Dakota for help with marketing, secured a loan from her local bank, and persuaded a North Dakota State University business class to create an automation plan for her.

After ten years of very hard work, however, Fresh Cab® ´s greatest trials were yet to come.

Enter the EPA: even natural rodent control products must be registered

One day, Warberg Block was stunned to learn that South Dakota had issued a statewide stop-sale order for Fresh Cab®. The reason? The EPA had classified the product—made solely from corn cobs and botanical oils—as a "bio-pesticide." This required EPA registration under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act—and Warberg hadn´t registered Fresh Cab®. She hadn´t thought it was necessary.

The N.D. Department of Agriculture told her that registering the product with the EPA would cost about $2 million and take two to three years. They offered her very little hope, in light of EPA´s stringent rules for active ingredient registration and biotechnology registration for pesticides. But after many frustrations and much more expense and hard work, Fresh Cab® became EPA´s first-ever registered plant-based rodent repellent for use indoors and in enclosed areas. Warberg Block could proudly put the EPA registration number on the Fresh Cab® label. Done and done, right?

Not so fast. Products requiring EPA certification require it not only at the federal level but from every state in which the product will be sold. If Warberg Block wanted to market her safe rodent control product nationally, she would need to obtain EPA certification 51 separate times: once at the federal level, and once in each state. Every state required different paperwork, and some even required different scientific studies and powers of attorney. Two states, CA and MN, also require a 4%-7% tax based on $ sales in each State, respectively.

Warberg Block persevered, though, and after spending 5 more years and more than $250,000, she is now marketing her completely natural rodent repellent in all 50 states with EPA approval. More than 1 million Fresh Cab® packages were sold in hardware, implement, and farm & ranch stores across the country in 2009.

The upshot: Fresh Cab® revolutionized the world of safe rodent control—and Kari Warberg Block was recently named one of the 10 most influential small business champions by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The story behind the label´s EPA registration number is why the entrepreneur is so proud of Fresh Cab®. To learn more about Warberg Block, Earth Kind, or Fresh Cab®, please visit www.earth-kind.com.

Mouse in the House: Learn the Signs, and How a Natural Rodent Repellent will Solve the Problem

Sat, 05 Jun 2010

Here´s the lowdown on mice: they´re not good neighbors. Dead or alive, they can carry up to 35 diseases, some of them fatal, including Hanta virus and Lyme disease. They can do tremendous chewing damage to almost all household materials, such as books, furniture, floors, joists, and walls. (Rodents need to chew constantly or their incisor teeth quickly grow too long to chew anything and they can starve to death.) They cause 8% of all U.S. building fires by chewing on electrical wires. And two mice can create 15,000—yes! Fifteen thousand!—babies and grandbabies in one year. (See testimonials for hair-raising stories of rodent damage.)

Disease, death, and destruction: that´s what Mickey and Minnie bring to your home. How can you tell they´re moving in, and how can you kick them out swiftly yet humanely?

7 tell-"tail" signs of a mouse in the house

Mice and rats are as quick as they are dirty. They´re silent, sneaky, and devious. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, your first clue of an infestation may be one of these signs:

1. Droppings, urine trails, or urine pools in your pantry, kitchen cabinets, and other food storage places, along walls, and behind large appliances

2. Tail or paw tracks visible in dusty areas along walls or behind appliances

3. Squeaks, rustling and scurrying; you´ll probably hear these sounds best at night

4. Holes in food containers—and rodents especially love dry dog food

5. Gnawing marks on wood, plastic, or drywall, or little piles of dust from gnawing

6. Nests made of soft, fluffy material. These nests will be hidden in subfloors, between walls, in unused closets, in large piles of garage or attic clutter, or maybe in upholstered furniture or a junction box: any place that feels safe and warm

7. A stale, musky, "mousy" smell in closed-up rooms or closets

8. Greasy smudge marks along walls from their coats as they move in and out

Your first impulse upon finding any of these signs may be to buy all the traps and poison in town—but hold on a second. Poison can hurt children, pets, and the environment, and, as the mice die an excruciating death, they may gnaw your property desperately for several days. Both poisons and traps leave dead rodents for you to pick up and potential poison for non-target pests who feed on them. A few years ago, these would have been your only choices for controlling rodents, other than calling the exterminator, but now there´s a natural rodent control product, Fresh Cab™ Mouse Pouches, that simply drives mice from your home.

Natural rodent control solution works with mouse instincts

The good news about mice and rats is that they´re driven entirely by instinct. If you understand those instincts—if you can "think like a rodent"—you can control rodents and keep them out of your home.

Kari Warberg Block knows how to think like a rodent. This North Dakota farmer wanted to get the mice out of her tractor cab without endangering her children or pets. Nothing on the market worked safely, so she started reading about rodents and experimenting with botanicals from her potpourri company.

What Warberg Block learned is that rodents can see only a few inches. They rely almost completely on their sense of smell to warn them of danger. She was surprised to learn that clean-smelling balsam fir oil blocks rodents´ ability to smell anything else—and when rodents can´t smell danger, they panic and run away. Balsam fir oil is instant rodent control.

Warberg Block´s 2002 creation—Fresh Cab® Original Mouse Pouch—rocked the rodent control world. It´s a biodegradable, apple-sized pouch—like a little potpourri sachet—filled with ground corn cobs permeated with botanical oils: balsam fir (of course), lavender, Spanish Rosemary, cedar, orange, and lemon. What could smell better—to humans, that is? Fresh Ca is a natural rodent repellent. It doesn´t kill mice and rats; the odor just makes them go away. The scent will last up to 90 days. Pouches placed at key points in your home, vehicle, RV, garage, attic, and garden shed will drive mice out and keep them out!

Who says so? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, that´s who. One, and only one, natural rodent repellent has survived the rigorous EPA testing necessary to become registered as non-toxic and effective indoors and in enclosed spaces: Fresh Cab. Since 2002, nearly 3 million Fresh Cab Mouse Pouches have sold through hardware stores and farm and ranch stores across the country. For more information about the company or the product, please visit www.earth-kind.com.

2% Carbon Footprint for a Rodent Control Product? Yes, With This Natural Rodent Repellent

Sat, 05 Jun 2010

If you have mice or rats in your home, tool shed, or RV, you want a rodent control product that works easily and inexpensively—but you probably also want one that´s safe and environmentally friendly. Only one natural rodent control product is so effective and safe that it´s registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). And only one natural rodent repellent has a proven "carbon footprint" of only 2%. That product is Fresh Cab®

Mouse Pouch. (Read Fresh Cab´s complete story at www.earth-kind.com.)

EPA registration of green rodent control products is a rigorous process

Kari Warberg Block is the founder and CEO of Earth Kind, which manufactures Fresh Cab. All she wants to do is create products that are "kind to the earth, kind to people, and kind to the pocketbook." Inside its recycled, biodegradable packaging, Fresh Cab natural rodent repellent is a strictly botanical product made only of ground corn cobs and essential oils of balsam fir, cedar, Spanish rosemary, lavender, lemon, and orange. The balsam fir oil is the ingredient that repels rats and mice by confusing their noses so that they can´t smell danger; the rodents freak out and leave the premises as fast as they can.

The EPA, however, classified all-botanical Fresh Cab as a "bio-pesticide." If Warberg Block wanted to sell her product, she needed to obtain EPA registrationunder the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act.

And that´s what she did. Luckily, she was naïve about what would be involved in EPA registration. It can take years, and involves lots of expensive testing. Products that will be sold nationwide must be EPA-registered 51 separate times: once at the federal level and once in every state. Finally, though, Fresh Cab became the only nationwide EPA-registered natural rodent repellent designed for use indoors and in enclosed spaces.

The next step: calculating Fresh Cab´s "carbon footprint"

But EPA registration wasn´t enough for Warberg Block. "As a manufacturer, I thought it was important to analyze the entire life cycle of Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch, from the field to my plant to retail shelves to consumers and back to the ground after disposal," she explains. Yes, it was definitely a green rodent control product; she wanted to know how green.

The method Warberg Block used for the analysis was a Windows-based decision-support tool from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) called BEES©(Building for Environmental and Economic Sustainability). BEES© analysis measures the environmental and economic performance of building products (including animal repellents designed for use indoors and in enclosed spaces). The tool, based on industry consensus standards, gives designers, builders, and manufacturer´s important data to help them make their products more environmentally friendly.

BEES© is sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency´s Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Programand supports federal Executive Order 13423, "Strengthening Federal Environmental, Energy, and Transportation Management." The U.S. federal government is the world´s largest consumer of goods and services, and these programs encourage federal agencies to use environmentally friendly, cost-effective products and practices.

The BEES© analysis included a rigorous, detailed study of Fresh Cab´s effect on:

• acidification (a process that lower the oceans´ pH through increased CO2 in the atmosphere)

• eutrophication (a process where nutrient-rich runoff encourages too much algae growth in a body of water)

• human health (cancer- and non-cancer-causing ingredients)

• air pollution

• smog

• ecological toxicity

• fossil fuel depletion

• global warming

• habitat alteration

• indoor air

• ozone depletion

• water intake

The analysis showed that Fresh Cab has an almost unbelievably small "carbon footprint" of only 2%. ("Carbon footprint" is the popular term for the total amount of "greenhouse gases," such as CO2, produced by a person, product, or activity.) With Fresh Cab, the minuscule carbon footprint is almost solely transportation-related. It reflects the fuel needed to get raw botanical products to the Fresh Cab manufacturing facility, as well as the fuel consumers use to buy the product at retail stores.

To put it another way, nothing in Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch is toxic to humans, pets, or the environment. Even the packaging is biodegradable. For this reason, in addition to an EPA registration number, Fresh Cab now also has a "bio-preferred" I.D. number with the U.S. government. When the world´s largest consumer of goods and services needs a natural rodent repellent, Fresh Cab, the proven green rodent control product, is among their preferred products. For more information about Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch, please go to www.earth-kind.com.

Revolutionary, Woman-owned, Natural Rodent Repellent Business Proves Green Rodent Control Works

Mon, 24 May 2010

In 2002, if your farm was infested with rats and mice and you wanted to get rid of them without using poison and endangering your young children, family pets, or the environment, you´d be in trouble. No rodent control solution met those simple requirements. Thanks to a North Dakota farmer though, effective, "green" rodent control is now affordable and available for everyone.

Kari Warberg Block just wanted the mice and rats to leave her farm and get out of her tractor cab. She didn´t want to kill them. She didn´t want them to die a slow, agonizing death and leave their bodies for her pets and kids to discover—or for her to clean up. Warberg Block started experimenting, and discovered that rodents freak out at the clean, fresh scent of balsam fir oil. Rats and mice are nearly blind and rely on their sense of smell to warn them of danger. Balsam fir oil obliterates that sense of smell, causing rodents to panic and run away.

The revolutionary natural rodent repellent that Warberg Block created with this knowledge is Fresh CabTM Original Mouse Pouch. Today, eight years later, her North Dakota company, Earth Kind, has sold more than 3 million Mouse Pouches and singlehandedly changed the rodent control business for good.

Natural rodent repellent that´s humane and cost-effective

"I believe that people can peacefully coexist with nature," Warberg Block says. "I needed a natural rodent control product that was humane, effective, and didn´t cost an arm and a leg. There was no such thing, so I invented it."

The rodent control market is huge. In the U.S., 28% of all households have purchased rodent control products or services. The market is also increasingly "green": 76% want "green" solutions, 82% will pay more for safer products, and 84% are willing to pay more for natural rodent control products or services that are eco-friendly.

Earth Kind operates according to Warberg Block´s mission of creating natural, safe, effective products that are "kind to the earth, kind to the people who make them, and kind to the pocketbook." Fresh CabTM is non-toxic, earth-friendly, and 98 percent non-petroleum-based. In addition, the packaging is recycled and biodegradable. Because Warberg Block believes in strong communities and environmental sustainability, she buys botanical ingredients from family farmers. Earth Kind also supports people with special needs by employing 45 developmentally challenged adults.

The first EPA-registered natural rodent repellent

After many grueling, costly years of independent testing, Fresh CabTM was registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In fact, Fresh CabTM is the only EPA-registered natural rodent control product on the market. The EPA wanted to remove 8 toxic bars and baits from retail shelves by 2012. However, because the U.S. Centers for Disease Control consider rodents a public health issue, the EPA couldn´t ban the toxic rodenticides until a safer, affordable, effective solution was available. The product that solved the EPA´s problem? Fresh CabTM.

"The EPA´s decision to ban some toxic rodenticides in 2012 created a $100 million opportunity for us," says Warberg Block, "and the response from large pesticide companies was predictable. They quickly came out with their own natural rodent repellents, often made from mint and citrus extracts that didn´t require EPA registration. Unfortunately, this also meant that those products were not EPA-reviewed and tested for effectiveness, either. Fresh Cab´s EPA registration proves that it works—and works safely."

The U.S. Small Business Association recently named Warberg Block one of the 10 most influential small business champions in America. She´s been on the cover of Country Woman Magazine and has been featured on Prairie Public TV, National Public Radio, and Fox News. And she´s a popular inspirational speaker for women´s groups across the country as she tells the story of conquering all the obstacles she´s met on the path to building a company that´s kind to the earth, kind to the people who make her products, and kind to the pocketbook.

For more details about Fresh CabTM or Earth Kind, please visit www.earth-kind.com

Keep Toddlers and Pets Safe While Ridding Your Home of Rats and Mice with Natural Rodent Repellent

Mon, 24 May 2010

As an adult, you learn to put up with almost anything—even a mouse in the house. Oh, you´re aware that rats and mice carry diseases (35 diseases, actually, transmitted through droppings, urine, saliva, and skin dander). And you know they do lots of damage with their constant chewing. And you may even know that by chewing on electrical wiring, rodents cause 8% of all building fires in the U.S.

But getting rid of the tricky, adaptable critters is hard work—much harder than simply ignoring them.

And then your first baby comes along.

Suddenly the mice behind kitchen wall and the peaceful family of rats in the garden shed threaten everything you hold dear, and rodent control becomes your most urgent mission.

3 very unsatisfactory ways to control rodents

Until recently, there has been no rodent control method that worked without being toxic or unaffordable.

• Traps, when they work, leave mice and rat carcasses for your crawling baby, toddler, or family pet—or you—to pick up. Those carcasses may still carry 35 known diseases.

• Poisons are poison. They can make a child or a pet very sick or even kill them. They also leave diseased carcasses to be disposed of. If you don´t get rid of poisons properly, they can hurt the environment. And while the rodents die slow, painful deaths, they´ll do lots of agonized chewing damage to your home.

Traps and poisons get rid of one rodent at a time—but if you´ve got one, you´ve got thousands. One affectionate pair of mice can produce up to 15,000 babies, grandbabies, and great-grandbabies in just one year. Which brings us to:

• Professional extermination- These procedures, undertaken by a trained rodent control professional, will work—until the rodents return—but can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars.

On the one hand: you need to control rodents in your home. On the other hand: you don´t want your solution to pose its own threat to children or pets or the environment. And on the third hand: you don´t want to spend your inheritance on rats and mice unless it´s absolutely necessary. What you need is a safe, effective, affordable, do-it-yourself, all-natural rodent repellent. You want it to be as easy to use as putting a potpourri sachet in your dresser drawer. You want it to be biodegradable. You want it to cost just pennies a day, last a long time, and make mice and rats avoid your home like—well, like the plague.

Fresh Cab® Original Mouse Pouch natural rodent repellent to the rescue

Kari Warberg Block was a North Dakota farmer with exactly your concerns. She had young children, beloved pets—and a farmhouse and tractor cab full of mice. She wanted the mice gone, but didn´t want to endanger her kids, pets, or the environment—and she was frugal. She tried everything anyone recommended, including moth balls, dryer static-cling sheets, and peppermint oils, to no avail.

Warberg Block started reading everything she could about rodents. She also experimented with various botanicals she had on hand for her thriving potpourri business. She learned that rats and mice are nearly blind and rely on their noses to warn them of danger. And she discovered that one scent that blocks rodents´ sense of smell and makes them crazy with fear is balsam fir oil.

In 2002, Warberg Block created Fresh Cab® Original Mouse Pouch, a neat little biodegradable "pouch" the size of an orange, filled with ground corn cobs soaked with various botanical oils, including balsam fir oil. Fresh Cab pouches placed strategically inside vehicles and sheds, in garages and attics, and where rodents live and breed in your home will drive them away for 90 days or more according to customer surveys and independent lab testing.

Since 2002, Warberg Block has sold more than 3 million Fresh Cab Mouse Pouches, many of them to return customers. Fresh Cab is the only natural rodent repellent to be registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as non-toxic and effective. (Getting registered by the EPA is grueling ordeal, but Warberg Block and Fresh Cab were up for the challenge.) The National Home Gardening Club and The Good Sam Club have also given Fresh Cab the thumbs-up for effectiveness and non-toxic ease of use.

The chances are that you can control rodents easily and inexpensively by purchasing Fresh Cab at your local hardware or farm and home store or from a "green" pest management professional. For more information on the product or the company, please explorewww.earth-kind.com.

Self-Storage Tenant Storing Marijuana Complains About Mice Damage

Mon, 24 May 2010

Posted in News, Crime

A tenant at an Ocala, Fla., self-storage facility who complained about mice damaging his property was storing marijuana in the unit.

Salomon Penaloza-Benitez logged a complaint with the manager at Southern Self Storage. But when she told him she would take care of the problem, the tenant told her not to worry about it.

Ocala Police Department found 18 pounds of marijuana in clear vacuum-sealed bags inside backpacks in the unit. Penaloza-Benitez was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana more than 20 grams with the intent to distribute and possession of drug paraphernalia.

While walking the property, a manager at the facility noticed a green leafy substance inside a unit. She called police who found a substantial amount of a green leafy substance in front of a unit. A search warrant was issued, and the substance was tested and was confirmed to be marijuana.

Penaloza-Benitez had rented the storage unit since March.

Source: Ocala.com

Think like a Rat to Solve Indoor Rat and Mouse Infestations using a Natural Rodent Repellent

Mon, 24 May 2010

Smart detectives in murder mystery stories solve the crime because they have the ability to think like a murderer. If you´ve got a rodent problem in your home, the same technique can work to make rodent control easier. Learn to "think like a rat" in order to frustrate household and outbuilding rodents at every turn. Then build a natural line of defense between you and them.

No one wants to live with rats and mice. They can transmit more than 35 diseases, and they start 8% of all U.S. building fires by chewing on electrical wiring. On the other hand, most people find rodents so disgusting that they don´t want to deal with them, either. They´d use traps—but don´t want to have to dispose of the bodies. They´d use poison—but are afraid of hurting children, pets, or the environment. Rodent control methods can be as unappetizing as the rodents themselves.

Many are looking for natural rodent control methods that work. Fresh Cab^_® natural rodent repellent works by either making rats and mice go away or keeping them out of your buildings in the first place. No poisons, no traps, no dead bodies—and no rodents. To use Fresh Cab^® most effectively, however, you need to learn to think like a rat.

Here´s the quick-and-dirty truth about quick-and-dirty rodents

• They want a home that gives them everything they need to survive: food, water, shelter, safety—and something hard to chew on, like electrical wiring. (If rodents don´t chew constantly, their incisor teeth quickly grow so they have a difficult time eating and can starve to death.)

• They can see only a few inches, and depend on scent trails for safe passage to food and water. They love spaces behind large kitchen appliances, in closets, between walls, in attics, and among garage clutter because their scent trails normally go unmolested in those places.

• Because they rely so heavily on scent to warn them of danger, rodents are deathly afraid of anything that interferes with their sense of smell. That´s where Fresh Cab^® comes in.

4 common-sense steps to effective, natural rodent control

Now that you know how rats and mice think and what they want above all else—security, food, water, and chewable material—you can begin to outsmart them.

1. Clean up- Garbage and clutter make rodents feel invisible and secure—and may provide a food source for them. Store all garbage in hard, plastic rat-resistant containers with tight lids. And make sure you have enough trash containers so that your garbage doesn´t spill over between pick-up days.

2. Keep landscaping neat- Eliminate as many outdoor rodent "safe havens" as possible. Near the building, get rid of tall weeds and trim low shrubs. And store firewood, kindling, brick, and stone on pallets away from the building and off the ground.

3. Stop inviting rodents inside- Mice can fit through a quarter-inch hole—about the diameter of a pencil eraser. Make sure you don´t have any entry points on the outside of your building.

• Fill cracks or small holes in the foundation, under doors, and in the entryway.

• Seal all outside cracks and holes—around dryer vents, soffit vents, pipes, wires, air conditioners, and attic vents—with steel wool or wire mesh, and then with caulk.

• Install high-quality weather-stripping at the base of all doors, and keep the garage door closed.

4. Create a natural line of defense- Remember: rats and mice depend almost entirely on their sense of smell to detect danger, and freak out when something interferes with that sense of smell. It turns out that balsam fir oil drives rodents absolutely nuts. It smells fresh and clean to humans, but messes with rodents´ sense of smell, making them feel jittery because they can´t smell danger. And when rats and mice are jittery, they leave—or don´t come in to begin with. Small, neat pouches of Fresh Cab at entry points and in unused indoor areas will keep the building rodent-free as part of the four-pronged method described above. The fragrance will last up to 100 days.

This new, natural rodent repellent—Fresh Cab—is the only one registered by the federal EPA and all state EPAs for use indoors and in enclosed spaces. It´s available at hardware retailers, farm and home stores, and through "green" pest management professionals across the country. For more information about the manufacturer, Fresh Cab, or how to use a natural rodent repellent, please visit www.earth-kind.com.

EPA-registered Natural Rodent Repellent Makes Integrated Pest Management Programs Cost-effective

Fri, 21 May 2010

The world is getting smarter, "greener," and more environmentally conscious—and that goes for commercial businesses with rodent infestations, too. Many traditional rodent control practices are poisonous and dangerous to children, pets, wildlife, and the environment. Surveys show that 3 out of 4 people with rat or mouse problems—including environmentally responsible businesses and their customers—want a safer, "greener" solution than poisons provide.

Businesses turning to integrated pest management (IPM) programs

Do-it-yourself rodent control in a home is one thing; in a business or manufacturing plant, it´s a vastly different problem. For this reason, businesses and public entities are increasingly turning to pest management professionals to help them develop an effective integrated pest management (IPM) program. These programs usually combine several rodent control methods which may be mechanical (traps, seals, or screens), biological (parasites or pathogens), chemical (pesticides or poisons), or environmental (manipulating the temperature or the scent of an area).

Using poisons or pesticides is one of the easiest rodent control methods, but since 2009, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has completely reshaped the agency´s pesticide policies. Pest management professionals will soon feel the pressure to use IPM methods, including natural rodent control products, for their commercial clients.

The combination of methods included in the IPM program will depend on a number of factors. All business owners and public entities, however, will want a program that meets the following criteria and is:

• The least hazardous to human health—including the health of the technician making the application

• The least toxic to rodents (animal-loving employees and customers will appreciate this)

• The least disruptive to the indoor and outdoor environment

• The easiest to perform

• The most cost-effective

At last—an EPA-registered, natural rodent repellent that works

If your business is owned by a cooperative, federally funded in any way, or simply aware of the bottom line (and who isn´t?), there´s good news for you. The EPA has finally registered the first all-natural rodent control product approved for indoors and enclosed spaces: Fresh Cab®. Fresh Cab is a natural rodent repellent that uses botanicals and balsam fir oil to simply drive rats and mice away from your business. As part of your IPM program, Fresh Cab is perfect for hard-to-treat areas such as:

• Drop ceilings, subfloors, and attics

• Pool and pump houses

• Zoos and kennels

• Detached storage containers

• Pallet racks in food storage areas

• Air conditioners, compressors, and generators

• Junction boxes and panel boxes

• Remote buildings without daily maintenance

In these difficult-to-reach areas, rats and mice have always frustrated rodent control efforts. Before Fresh Cab, the only solutions available to pest management professionals were toxic bait traps, tracking powder, and glue boards, all of which need to be checked daily. According to the National Pest Management Association, pest control professionals cost a company an average of $250 per hour; so using them to monitor and control rodents can be very expensive. Fresh Cab as part of your IPM will not only drive rodents out but keep them out for up to three months. (Independent tests have found Fresh Cab to be 75-90% effective for up to 100 days indoors and in enclosed areas.) More than 3 million neat little Fresh Cab pouches have sold to date, and 9 out of 10 Fresh Cab customers make repeat purchases.

As you´re developing your IPM plan, it will be important to follow the seemingly endless federal and state rodent control guidelines. Doing so could protect you from potential lawsuits for misusing a pesticide.

For more information on IPM methods, visit www.NPMA.org or phone (703) 352-6762. And to learn how Fresh Cab, the only EPA-registered natural rodent repellent, can fit into your IPM program, please visit www.earth-kind.com, or call 1-800-583-2921 and ask for the technical director.

3 Label Items that Green Landlords should check before buying Non-Toxic Rodent Control Products

Fri, 21 May 2010

City-dwelling humans have been battling rats and mice in the U.S. since the first Europeans (and urban rats and mice) disembarked here more than 400 years ago. In the 21st century, many tenants are serious about living in "green," environmentally friendly apartments—and that means "green" rodent control, too. Fortunately for landlords, there´s an all-natural rodent control product that works.

Why a rodent control problem is a big landlord problem

The oldest cities, particularly along the eastern U.S. seaboard, have the highest rodent populations, although it´s impossible to get a firm fix on the numbers. Rats and mice are experts at living and breeding under sidewalks and in littered alleyways, deteriorating walls, asphalt foundations, and ceiling and attic voids.

In NYC, it´s not unusual for pest control professionals to trap several hundred rats and mice a week in retail basements and wall areas in one city block—and still not solve the rodent problem. It makes perfect sense when you understand that one mouse couple can create 15,000 mouse babies and grandbabies in just one year.

Rats and mice are not just uninvited tenants who are harmless until they´re discovered. The U.S. government and most state and city governments consider household rodents a public health issue. Rats and mice start 8% of all house and building fires in the U.S. by chewing on electrical wiring. They can spread more than 35 known diseases.

And they can drive out good tenants.

Controlling rodents is a complex undertaking. It will probably require a coordinated effort involving the local Board of Health, street and sanitation administrators, pest management professionals, and even local politicians. If using an effective, environmentally friendly rodent control product is important to you as a landlord, your leadership will be critical.

Three must-haves on the label of a natural rodent control product

Traps and poisons can harm pets and children and don´t protect them from catching or spreading rodent diseases. They also leave lots of unsightly rodent carcasses. Poisons need to be disposed of properly or they´ll harm the environment. If you´re looking for safe, effective, natural rodent control, make sure the following information is on the label:

1. Proof of Federal Registration with the EPA- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) registration number should be on the front panel of the product. This number—which is granted only after years of successful testing—assures you that the EPA has fully evaluated the product to insure effectiveness and safety. Additionally, rodent control products must be registered with the EPA in each State in which they´re sold or distributed. To date, only one truly natural indoor-use product has passed the EPA´s scrutiny: Fresh Cab® natural rodent repellent.

2. Visible, easy-to-understand directions for use, storage, and disposal, as well as safety warnings- It´s illegal for EPA-registered rodent control products to claim that they´re biodegradable unless their package is also biodegradable. It´s also illegal for them to claim that they pose no health or safety risks unless they have undergone extensive third-party product safety testing and passed an EPA review. The only natural rodent repellent to date that is not required to carry any safety warnings is Fresh Cab.

3. Customer service phone number- On rodent control products, the EPA requires clear directions and a toll-free phone number for customers who have questions. An ethical company doesn´t just want to sell you a product; it wants to help you solve your rat or mouse problem.

And finally, look into the manufacturer´s reputation. Check with the Better Business Bureau in your state. See what a search on Google or YouTube turns up. Is the company recognized by third-party organizations such as the National Home Gardening Club or the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI)? What does the U.S. Department of Agriculture have to say about the company or product? Is the company a member of the National Pest Management Association?

Your tenants are likely to expect you to solve a rodent problem in an environmentally respectful way. Learn more about the only EPA-registered indoor rodent control product—Fresh Cab natural rodent repellent—at www.earth-kind.com.

Do-It-Yourself Mouse and Rat Control is Easy with Over-the-Counter, Safe, Natural Rodent Repellent

Thu, 15 Apr 2010

DIY projects are skyrocketing in popularity. They make sense in the current economy, but more than that, they provide us with a sense of accomplishment and self-sufficiency. People with mouse or rat problems on their property—and people who simply want to avoid rodent problems—will be thrilled to learn that there´s an easy, green, effective, DIY way to repel rodents .

Nearly 30% of the U.S. population has a rodent control problem

The odds are almost 1 in 3 that you have rodents on your property. One little pair of mice and their offspring can create 15,000 more mice in the space of a single year. They´re cute in cartoons, but in real life, rodents carry and cause 35 known diseases in humans, including potentially fatal afflictions such as Lyme disease and Hanta virus. Rats and mice also cause 8% of all U.S. building fires by gnawing on electrical wiring. Clearly, finding a way to control rodents is critical for human health and safety.

Many people phone a professional exterminator the moment they suspect they have a rodent control problem. (And by the time they suspect a problem, the chances are that it´s already much worse than they think. Rodents can somehow make themselves invisible while doing lots of expensive damage.) Professional exterminators are lifesavers in dire cases of overwhelming rodent infestation, but their treatments can be costly as well as potentially harmful to people and pets. What´s needed is a safe, easy, do-it-yourself way to prevent and control rodents.

Botanical, natural rodent control makes DIY rodent control easy

Kari Warberg Block, a North Dakota farmer, had rodents in her tractor cab. Poisons and traps could endanger her kids and pets, and also left disgusting mouse carcasses and skeletons for her to remove. Mothballs smelled bad and really didn´t work. Warberg Block began experimenting with the botanical oils she had on hand to make potpourri, and discovered that balsam fir oil works great to repel rodents. The scent makes them feel vulnerable by preventing them from smelling danger. Rats and mice hate feeling vulnerable—they´d rather settle down somewhere nice and safe—so balsam fir oil makes them want only one thing: to get away fast.

A DIY natural rodent repellent called Fresh Cab® is the result of Warberg Block´s efforts. Fresh Cab is the only natural rodent repellent that has been registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as effective for use indoors and in enclosed areas such as garden and tool sheds, garages, and vehicle cabs. The product contains nothing but natural ingredients: ground corn cobs that have been soaked in essential oils, including balsam fir, lavender, cedar, Spanish rosemary, lemon, and orange. It´s all wrapped up in a tidy, breathable pouch, and is sold across the country in farm and ranch stores, hardware stores, and other retail outlets. Humans tend to love the smell—in fact, many people place Fresh Cab in musty closets—but it will repel rodents quickly and effectively.

8 great do-it-yourself ways to use natural rodent control

To make rodents leave, place Fresh Cab®:

1. In the pantry

2. In all dark, damp, seldom-disturbed places, such as under the kitchen sink and inside all bathroom vanities, behind the washer/dryer.

3. In crawl spaces, drop ceilings, and between walls

4. In the corners and along the walls of your attic, basement, garage, and any unused rooms. In addition, clear out indoor clutter that makes rodents want to set up housekeeping on the premises.

To stop rodents from entering the premises:

5. Fill all outside cracks and holes in your foundation, subfloors, pipe openings, soffit vents, cable vents, gable vent screens, and turbine and box vents on roofs. Fill every hole larger than ¼ inch—about the size of a pencil eraser. Then place Fresh Cab near these potential openings.

6. Fill larger cracks and holes with wire mesh or steel wool, and then seal with a recommended caulk or foam insulation.

7. Install weather stripping at the base of every door, keep doors closed as much as possible, and place Fresh Cab near doors.

8. In your yard, store bricks, firewood, dead branches, etc., away from the house and off the ground.

Fresh Cab, placed strategically and replaced every 90 days, will keep your property rodent-free. Many happy property owners, managers, and landlordsuse Fresh Cab for easy, do-it-yourself, natural rodent control. Check at a farm and ranch or hardware store near you. To read more about the company and the product, visit www.earth-kind.com.

Save Money on Rodent Problems with Economical, Environmentally Safe, Natural Rodent Repellent

Thu, 15 Apr 2010

These days, most people are looking for ways to save money. Regardless of your income or your "outgo," you´ve probably got less left over at the end of the month than you used to. If you have a rodent problem on your property, you´re looking for the most economical solution. Rest easy: a trip to your local hardware or farm and ranch store could save you hundreds and thousands of dollars.

4 ways rats and mice can cost you big $$

Rodent problems can be expensive in ways that many people haven´t ever considered.

1. Rodents destroy your property. They need to gnaw constantly or their incisor teeth quickly grow too long to use and become extremely uncomfortable. They eat wood, drywall, leather, plastic, rubber, and electrical wiring in your home, outbuildings, and vehicles. (What a family of mice can do to an RV is not pretty.) And mice and rats that have been poisoned or caught in a conventional trap can take several days to die—days that they spend in agony, feverishly chewing and scratching your property as they try to escape their pain.

2. Rodents start fires. Rodents love to gnaw on wires. They start 8% of all building fires in the U.S. by chewing on electrical wiring and causing a short.

3. Rodents can make you sick. Through their droppings, urine, hair, and dander, rats and mice have been found to spread 35 different diseases to humans. These ailments range from allergies to Lyme disease and Hanta virus, but they´re all serious and several are potentially fatal.

4. Getting rid of rodents can cost serious money. If you allow a rodent problem to get bad enough, an exterminator may be your only solution. Professionally trained, licensed, experienced exterminators don´t come cheap.

5 attributes of the perfect natural rodent control product

If you´re looking for a do-it-yourself rodent control product, you probably want it to be:

1. Widely available

2. Easy to use

3. Safe for humans, pets, and the environment

4. Economical

5. Effective

A farmer from North Dakota invented Fresh Cab®, a natural rodent repellent, to meet exactly those criteria.

Kari Warberg Block was annoyed to find mice in her tractor cab. Because she had children and pets, she didn´t want to use poisons or traps, so she started looking for an environmentally safe, natural rodent repellent. There were none, so she set out to develop one. What she discovered was balsam fir oil, which smells fresh and woodsy to humans but scares the living daylights out of rats and mice. It blocks their ability to smell danger, which panics them and makes them leave the area as fast as their little legs can carry them.

Fresh Cab is a natural rodent repellent, not a rodenticide. It doesn´t kill rodents and then leave you to clean up their little carcasses. It simply makes them go away and stay away for up to 90 days. Fresh Cab is the only natural rodent repellent registered by the EPA for use indoors and in small enclosed areas such as sheds and vehicles. It´s made from 100% U.S. natural ingredients, including ground corn cobs and essential botanical oils (balsam fir, cedar, lavender, Spanish rosemary, orange, and lemon). You can buy easy-to-use Fresh Cab pouches in hardware stores, farm and ranch stores, and other retail locations across the country.

Fresh Cab natural rodent repellent makes it easy for you to get rid of mice and rats while the rodent problem´s still small enough to be an economical do-it-yourself project. Save money in two ways: stop the little pests from destroying your property, and do it for pennies a day. To learn more about Fresh Cab and the manufacturer, please visit www.earth-kind.com

Protect Seasonal Clothes and Equipment from Mice and Rats with Botanical, Natural Rodent Control

Mon, 12 Apr 2010

When you protect your seasonal possessions from the elements, make sure to protect them from rodent damage, too.

In most of the country, people own clothing and equipment that´s used during some parts of the year and stored during others. In the winter, garden equipment, outside furniture, and boats are in storage. In the spring and summer, parkas and snowmobiles get put away in the garage.

Stored items are a Disney World for rodents. Mice and rats delight in destruction. They´re thrilled to conceive and give birth to litter after litter of rodent babies in your stored clothes. Wooden furniture is a special treat for them. And they´re delighted to chew the wiring or seats in your stored farm and recreational vehicles. Rats and mice must chew constantly or their teeth grow too big to use. They´ll enthusiastically work their way through plastic, drywall, wood, and wire. Oh, and by the way: the little varmints spread more than 35 known diseases through their urine and droppings.

Desperately needed: natural rodent control

Years ago, Kari Warberg Block had a mouse problem in her stored tractor. Warberg Block, who farmed in North Dakota, couldn´t use moth balls to control rodents because she has allergies. (Besides, moth balls don´t work particularly well on rats and mice.) Poison was also out of the question. "I didn´t want to endanger my kids and pets, and I didn´t want to have to pick up and dispose of dead rodent carcasses," she says. "I needed to invent a natural rodent repellent that would keep rats and mice out of my stuff without hurting kids, pets, or the environment."

After lots of experimentation, Warberg Block discovered that balsam fir oil, which smells great to humans, will repel rodents by putting them in a panic. The scent interferes with rats´ and mice´s ability to smell anything else, including danger, so they simply go away to find a safer place.

Repel rodents naturally and freshen your environment

Warberg Block´s product, Fresh Cab, is made of corn cob chips and natural herbal extracts placed in a neat little pouch. Fresh Cab is the first and only EPA-registered plant-based solution for controlling rats and mice indoors and in enclosed areas. It´s received the National Home Gardening Club´s member-tested-and-recommended seal of approval. Fresh Cab is also endorsed by the Green Business Network, the Good Sam Club (the world´s largest RV owner association), and Care2.com (an online site for people interested in environmental and social issues).

Chemical engineer William B. Isaacson uses Fresh Cab in his boats during the winter, and in his garage and antique classic car and airplane all year long. His testimonial to Warberg Block was blunt: "I wanted to let you know that this product just plain works. I previously used other products, which were not always reliable. Your Fresh Cab product has been 100% effective and easy to use…. An additional benefit has been the fresh, spring-like smell it imparts to what would otherwise have been musty environments. …From one entrepreneur to another, I think you have a real winner."

The benefits of natural rodent control

Fresh Cab is safe around children and pets, and the pouches of natural rodent repellent are easy to use. To control rodents, just drop one into a box of stored clothes or the cab of a stored vehicle. Place one under the protecting covering of boats and stored recreational "toys." And place Fresh cab pouches in garage clutter and corners, near garage doors, in your garden shed, and near vents and in corners of your attic—in any enclosed space where you don´t want rodents having fun.

The best part of using a natural rodent repellent to control rodents is that mice and rats simply leave your property in a big hurry and go somewhere else. There are no dead rodents to dispose of, and no chewing damage caused by their slow, agonizing death throes.

Home improvement, farm and home, and hardware stores across the country—including Ace Hardware—sell Fresh Cab natural rodent repellent. Click here to find a retailer near you. And go to www.earth-kind.com for more information about all their rodent control products.

Electric and Utility Providers Save Big $$$ with New, Botanical Natural Rat and Mouse Control

Mon, 12 Apr 2010

The easiest way for utility companies to control rodents is to keep mice and rats from ever setting up housekeeping—and a natural rodent repellent is the most effective way to do that.

An Illinois electricity provider had a big, expensive problem. It needed to clean and tune up the 64 air conditioning units used to keep its 32 cell towers cool and operating efficiently year-round. The problem: all the cell towers, located in rural communities, were full of mice. The critters loved setting up nests in the AC panels and chewing through the electrical wiring, which caused significant damage and a huge number of compressor failures. A whopping 98% of the towers had rodent damage, and each repair cost between $100 and $3,000. The math was daunting.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch: natural rodent control

In 1998, North Dakota rancher Kari Warberg Block had experienced the same problem on a smaller scale: she had mice in the cab of her farm tractor. Warberg Block didn´t want to use moth balls to repel rodents because she has allergies (and moth balls stink). She also decided against poisons because she was worried about her children and family pets.

Warberg Block had once chased a mouse out of a truck cab with a spray perfume she kept in her purse. She knew that mice hate lots of smells that people love. Experimenting with the natural botanical essential oils that she used to make potpourri from wildflowers, she discovered the magic of balsam fir oil: people like it but rodents run from it in terror. Why? Because it endangers their lives by preventing them from smelling danger. Rats and mice never knowingly place themselves in danger. They live, breed, and destroy only where they feel perfectly safe. Manipulating their sense of smell is a quick, easy, inexpensive way to repel rodents.

Warberg Block named her product Fresh Cab® and put it in clean, disposable, easy-to-use pouches. It´s made of corn cob chips saturated with natural botanical oils that are pleasant to humans, and the main active scent is balsam fir oil. Fresh Cab is the first—and is still the only—EPA-registered plant-based product that will control rodents in enclosed areas and indoors. It has received the National Home Gardening Club´s member-tested-and-recommended seal of approval, and is also endorsed by the Good Sam Club (the world´s largest association for RV owners), Care2.com (a site about social and environmental issues), and the Green Business Network.

3 reasons electric and utility companies should use natural rodent repellent

1. The public demands environmentally safe practices. Fresh Cab natural rodent repellent is safe for use around kids and pets and is widely used in homes as well as in manufacturing, business, and utility settings. This means that it´s safe for employees who use it, and it´s also safe for the environment. Utilities can tell their customers with complete confidence that they use a "green" product to help ensure that their service is continuous.

2. Keeping rodents away substantially decreases rodent damage, lowering costs for the company and service down-time for customers. Deal with rodent problems once and then never again. Just put a convenient Fresh Cab pouch in any enclosed area with existing or potential rodent problems—rats and mice will leave and never come back. Service professionals will save time because he pouches remain effective for up to 90 days in places such as garages and sheds, and last even longer in smaller, tightly enclosed areas.

3. Natural rodent control is the most cost-effective way to keep rats and mice out of enclosed places. Fresh Cab works (read testimonials) and costs less than the amount of poison or number of traps that would be needed to be equally effective. And it doesn´t leave dead rodents scattered around to be cleaned up. A natural rodent repellent makes sure those varmints don´t enter in the first place.

Remember that electric provider with the mice in its 64 air conditioning units? These days, that provider´s service professionals just place a Fresh Cab pouch in each unit twice a year during the semi-annual tune-up. Damage reports have dropped below 10%, saving the company tens of thousands of dollars annually. Best of all, Fresh Cab has drastically cut down on the number of service interruptions its customers suffer.

Retailers and wholesalers across the nation sell Fresh Cab. If rats and mice are losing money for your business, corporation, electric company, or utility, visit www.earth-kind.com to learn how Fresh Cab natural rodent control can help you.

Farmers and Ranchers Save $$$ in Damage and Lost Time with Safe, Effective, Natural Rodent Control

Mon, 12 Apr 2010

Farmers and ranchers face almost insurmountable challenges: weather, crop prices, shipping costs, rats and mice . . . . Rats and mice? Yes. The pesky critters do $8 million in damage to U.S. farms and ranches every year. Fortunately, there´s an easy, effective, safe, economical way to control rodents.

8 million is a lot of damage. Mice and rats chew up headliners, seats, and upholstery in trucks, tractors, combines, and other expensive implements. They damage air conditioning and air intake filters and shred plastic and rubber lines. They cause electrical shorts—and fires—by gnawing on wiring. To all these "hard" costs, add the time spent cleaning up rodent messes. Their urine, droppings, and dander not only make vehicle and implement cabs unbearable but can aggravate human allergies and spread 35 known diseases, including Lyme disease and Hanta virus, which is an often-fatal lung infection.

The solution is Fresh Cab®, a botanical, natural rodent repellent sold in farm and ranch stores across the country. For more than 8 years, farmers and ranchers have trusted Fresh Cab to repel rodents.

Why use a natural rodent repellent for rat and mouse control?

For greatest cost-effectiveness, farmers and ranchers want a rodent control method that will do the job easily and inexpensively and not endanger kids, pets, livestock, or the environment. A North Dakota farmer created Fresh Cab to do just that. The active ingredient is woodsy-scented balsam fir oil, which will repel rodents like magic. It´s applied to ground corn cobs along with other botanical oils and then wrapped up in a neat little pouch.

How does Fresh Cab control rodents?

Mice and rats can see only inches, so they live and die by their sense of smell. If that sense is blocked so that the rodents can´t smell danger, they panic and run away to somewhere safer. Fresh Cab´s patented ingredient formula clogs rodents´ sense of smell, making them feel vulnerable. They don´t even think about entering a vehicle cab, tool shed, or garage that contains Fresh Cab natural rodent control pouches.

What makes Fresh Cab different from other forms of rodent control?

• It will control rodents before they decide to come in and make costly farm and ranch implements their own private holiday resort. (One affectionate mouse couple can produce up to 15,000 offspring per year.) A Fresh Cab pouch placed in a vehicle cab will repel rodents effectively for up to 90 days.

• Balsam fir oil and the other essential botanical oils in Fresh Cab natural rodent repellent smell good to humans. Moth balls, on the other hand? Not so much. And they really don´t work anyway.

• Most importantly, Fresh Cab is the first (and is still the only) EPA-registered rodent repellent certified for use indoors and in enclosed areas. Farmers can buy it over the counter from their local farm store or implement dealer. This means they don´t need to hire an exterminator who will charge a lot more and probably use dangerous rodenticides. Many alternative do-it-yourself solutions have been removed from the market because either they didn´t work or they were potentially harmful to humans, animals, or the environment. The EPA says that Fresh Cab works and is safe. That´s the biggest difference between it and other rodent repellents.

Farmers and ranchers work too hard to waste time and money on rodent control methods that don´t work. A Fresh Cab natural rodent repellent pouch indoors or in an enclosed space provides fast, safe, long-lasting, economical, natural rodent control. Ask your implement dealer or farm and ranch store for more information and recommendations for use, and visitwww.earth-kind.com for store locator, product and company information.

5 Expert Tips Pest Management Professionals Should Use To Safely & Effectively Control Rodents

Mon, 22 Feb 2010

Controlling rodents in food preparation and storage facilities is a big problem—but it´s never been easier than with the natural rodent control in Fresh Cab pouches.

Rats and mice have always been expert at getting what they want. Even modern pest management professionals need to use every trick in the book to outwit them. Controlling rodents in food distribution warehouses, restaurants, bakeries, and other food production facilities is a special problem, because traditional rat and mouse control methods—traps and poisons—may not be best.

Structural issues in these facilities often make traps and poisons ineffective. In addition, consumers increasingly demand less-toxic, no-kill, natural rodent control products. Studies show that 76% of adults want "green" solutions to pest problems, and 82% want to control rodents in environmentally safe ways. In fact, 64% will seek out and pay extra for eco-friendly pest management professionals—and that number is growing.

Damage from Rats and mice adds up to over $1 billion in losses annually.

This demand for methods to control rodents effectively in "green" ways can be a pest management professional´s worst nightmare. Rodents are nearly indestructible. Mice can survive and reproduce in temperatures as low as 24 degrees if they have adequate food and nesting space. In one year, one mouse produces up to 18,000 droppings, and a mouse couple can create as many as 15,000 offspring. Rats have been known to eat up to 2.7 ounces of food in a day—that´s 61 pounds of food per rat each year. U.S. businesses lose an estimated $1 billion to rats every year as the rats chew wiring, cause fires, damage doors and insulation, and eat stored products such as pet foods and cereal.

To control rodents in an eco-friendly way, pest management professionals need a natural rodent control product. Fresh Cab is the first EPA-registered, indoor-use, natural rodent repellent. Knowing the five industrial structural areas most vulnerable to rodents, and understanding how to use Fresh Cab, can help pest management professionals win the rodent battle in even the hardest-to-control situations.

To keep food preparation and storage buildings free of rats and mice, pay special attention to these five areas:

1. Drop ceilings. Mice and rats love dark areas where they can live undetected. Ceiling crawl spaces and drop ceilings are hard for humans to get to, which makes it hard to monitor and control rodents. Fresh Cab natural rodent control effectively keeps rodents out of these areas for a month or more—or can be used to chase mice and rats into another area where they can be successfully trapped or baited.

2. Meters and electrical panels. In almost any business, rodents seek out meters and panels as points of entry, nesting sites, and places to cool down or warm up. They also love to gnaw on wiring. Check around water meters, electrical panels, junction boxes, and wiring harnesses. Pay particular attention to hollow blocks or transformers near an electrical panel—they may serve as a nesting site.

3. Utility lines. Rodents have sharp claws, are great climbers, and love to climb and run along electric wires, pipes, poles, ropes, cables, conduit, augers, conveyors, and even underground utility and communication lines. A pest management professional who can "read the building lines" has a powerful tool, and Fresh cab is highly effective when placed where it will disrupt a scent trail.

4. Pallet racks. Pallet racks and partially capped upright beams in warehouses and distribution centers can be a superhighway for rodents, allowing them to come and go almost undetected. Many facilities have seen excellent results from integrating pest management methods with perimeter trapping, bait stations, and Fresh Cab pouches placed on or near pallets.

5. Holes. Pest management professionals doing an inspection should always assume that the structure has changed or deteriorated since the last inspection. Construction defects, gaps in fascia board, and poorly caulked entrance areas around wires and vents lead to rodent infestations (By the way, caulk and expandable foam are fillers but are not sealers and will not stop rodents from entering). "Stopping rodents at the hole" can keep a business rodent-free and is the ultimate ´"green" solution. (It´s always a good idea to keep a complete record of all rodent activity and counts found during inspections. Visit www.npmapestworld.orgfor technical tips on keeping a log.)

The regulatory environment continues to evolve, and consumer demand for "green" solutions is reshaping the pest management industry. Thanks to Fresh Cab, "green" and "effective" are no longer mutually exclusive concepts. For tips on the most efficient use of Fresh Cab, go to www.earthkind.com

Rodent-Control Expert Invents Natural Rodent Control Alternative To Dangerous Traps And Poisons

Fri, 29 Jan 2010

Rats! The odds are about one in three that you have them—or mice—in your home, barn, shed, vehicle, or other enclosed spaces. You may have tried rat poison, but it can also kill pets—or curious toddlers. Pets who eat poisoned rodents can also get sick and die. And pets or toddlers who investigate trapped rats may be exposed to 35 different diseases. However, the problem has been solved by a woman who invented a new, all-natural rodent control method out of sheer necessity.

Kari Warberg Block was a farmer with young children and pets. She wanted a safe way to control rodents in her home and vehicle cabs, and eventually created Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch. The main ingredient is balsam fir oil, which doesn´t interest pets but is strongly repugnant to mice and rats. Fresh Cab doesn´t kill rodents—it just makes them want to go away as fast as possible. One pair of mice can result in as many as 15,000 baby mice in one year, but with Fresh Cab, not only won´t they set up a nursery in your home, they won´t even unpack their bags.

Consumers want natural rodent control methods

Increasingly, homeowners, renters, and landlords ask for natural, less-toxic ways to control mice and rats. A 2007 Harris Interactive poll found that 78% of consumers want a natural rodent control method and 82% want mouse and rat control to be environmentally safe. Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch is all that. In fact, Warberg Block´s product is the only ´green´ rodent repellent registered by the federal Environmental Protection Agency as certified for use in enclosed areas and indoors.

"Mice and rats are basically blind," Warberg Block explains. "They can see only a few inches, so their sensitive noses tell them whether an environment is safe. I discovered, after lots of trial and error, that the smell of balsam fir—which most humans enjoy—scares the living daylights out of rodents and makes them desperate to leave the area."

Balsam fir oil is the main scent of Fresh Pouch Mouse Cab. That oil, along with other essential oils of lavender, cedar, Spanish rosemary, orange, and lemon, is mixed with shredded corn cobs to provide natural rodent control. No more worries about pets or toddlers eating poison. (There are no known safety risks with ingesting Fresh Cab.) No more little rodent skeletons or carcasses for you to pick up and dispose of. No more gnawing damage to your home and other property from poisoned rodents in agony for several days before they die.

Properly placed Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch keeps rodents out

Fresh Cab is intended for indoor use in enclosed spaces, and will keep rats and mice away for 100 days when placed correctly. For the most effective use, consider the following helpful hints.

• To keep rodents from entering from the outside, place Fresh Cab near holes around soffit vents, gable vents, turbine vents, box vents, and cable entry vents. Mice can squeeze through a hole the size of a pencil eraser, so fill all outside cracks and holes with steel wool or wire mesh, and then seal them with foam or caulk. Also place Fresh Cab in other potential rodent entrances, such as crawl spaces, dryer vents, and drop ceilings. Keep a Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch on each side of the garage door, and keep the door closed. Store piles of "stuff" (bricks, rocks, branches, firewood, etc.) as far from the house as possible.

• To strongly encourage existing rodents to leave your property, place Fresh Cab under your kitchen sink and in your pantry. That´s where rodents will look for food. Also place Fresh Cab behind large appliances and cabinets, and in corners. Eliminate indoor piles of clutter or debris, especially in your attic, basement, and garage, that provide safe hiding places for rats and mice.

Whether you have rats and mice in your home or in your storage unit, farm equipment, vehicle, camper, tack room, or hunting cabin, Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch will get pesky rodent residents moving out the door and keep new newcomers from moving in. For more information about Fresh Cab and its uses, visit www.earth-kind.com.

Master Gardener Invents Botanical Alternative To Rodent Traps, Rat & Mouse Poison, And Glue Boards

Fri, 29 Jan 2010

Whether you garden in town or in the country, the odds are that you have mice or rats in your gardening shed, garage, greenhouse, or supply storage area like North Dakota Inventor & Master Gardener Kari Warberg Block did. And whether or not you´re an organic gardener, you´ll want to take care of your rodent problem in the easiest, safest, most effective way. Fresh Cab Botanical Rodent Repellent provides the perfect all-natural way to control mice and rats in your gardening enclosures.

Master gardener Kari Warberg Block lived on a farm and had young children and pets. She also had a rodent problem in her home, out-buildings, and farm vehicle cabs. After years of trial and error research, she created Fresh Cab Botanical Rodent Repellent.

Fresh Cab—whose main ingredient is balsam fir oil—offers a brand-new botanical way to control rodents. Although it smells pleasant to humans, it absolutely disgusts mice and rats, driving them out of enclosed spaces as fast as their furry little legs will carry them.

The National Home Gardening Club awarded its member-tested-and-recommended seal of approval to Fresh Cab Botanical Rodent Repellent. In addition, Fresh Cab is the only rodent repellent registered by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency as certified for use indoors and in enclosed areas. Whether you´re an experienced, passionate gardener or are newly interested in beating the recession by growing some of your own food, Fresh Cab will solve your rodent problem safely and effectively.

3 dangers of rodent traps and poison

Traditional methods of rodent control—poisons and traps—often don´t work well. When they do work, they leave little skeletons or carcasses for you to dispose of. The worst thing about poisons and traps, however, is that they can sicken or even kill pets—and small children.

Much of the growing interest in organic gardening is based on a desire to eat only food that has no potentially harmful chemicals in it, or on it. Rodent poison, however, is created for the express purpose of doing harm when ingested. Traps carry a different—but just as deadly—type of risk. Here are three ways that poisons and traps can hurt pets and children.

1. Poison is, well, poison. It just makes sense: bait that attracts rodents will also attract your family pet—and may be picked up and eaten by an inquisitive toddler. Mouse and rat poison causes incredibly painful internal bleeding, breathing difficulties, seizures, kidney damage, and sometimes death. More than 8,000 pet owners called the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in 2008 to get emergency veterinary advice for pets that had eaten rat and mouse poison.

2. A poisoned rodent is full of dangerous poison. Your pet can become poisoned by eating a poisoned mouse or rat, and the more poisoned rodents your pet eats, the sicker it will get. The effects are often misdiagnosed, so you´ll be looking at long-term agony—or even death—for your pet, as well as vet bills bigger than your compost pile.

3. Trapped, diseased rodents can kill. Rodents have been found to carry 35 diseases, including Lyme disease (spread through ticks) and Hantavirus, a rare but often-fatal lung infection spread by deer mouse droppings, urine, or saliva. Whether the trapped rodent is dead or alive, it can transmit disease to a pet or child who touches it, endangering your entire family.

Get rid of mice and rats safely and effectively with botanical Fresh Cab

Fresh Cab Botanical Rodent Repellent works on a brand-new principle: don´t kill the rodents and leave a mess for yourself—instead, make your enclosed gardening spaces so unattractive to rodents that they don´t even come in to look around. Kari Warberg Block discovered that rodents absolutely despise the clean, fresh scent of balsam fir oil. Botanical Fresh Cab is made with corn cobs and essential oils: balsam fir, lavender, Spanish rosemary, cedar, orange, and lemon.

Your pets and children won´t be interested in Fresh Cab, but if they do ingest it, there are no known safety risks. There aren´t even any safety risks for rodents—but they won´t come near Fresh Cab with a hundred-foot pole.

To learn more about Fresh Cab Botanical Rodent Repellent and where to place it on your property for maximum effectiveness, visit www.earth-kind.com

Expert Advice On Natural Rodent Control Without Using Messy, Dangerous Mouse Traps And Rat Poisons

Fri, 29 Jan 2010

There´s a 30% chance you have rats or mice where you live or in buildings you own. Maybe, as an animal lover, you´re okay with that. Or maybe you see wild rodents as merely a minor inconvenience. Kari Warberg Block—creator of Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch and an animal lover herself—suggests you consider natural rodent control.

4 big reasons to control rodents in your buildings and enclosed areas

• Disease. Mice and rats are known to carry 35 diseases, including Hantavirus and Lyme disease. Humans can catch diseases from rodents through urine, droppings, or saliva (in the case of a rodent bite), and some of the diseases can be fatal.

• Damage. Rodents damage your property by shredding any and all building materials. Mice and rats have continually growing incisor teeth that need to be used constantly, or they grow too big to use and the animal starves to death.

• Fire. Mice and rats cause 8% of all U.S. building fires by gnawing wiring and causing electrical shorts. What´s worse, your insurance policy may not cover rodent-caused fires.

• Romance. One loving mouse couple can create 15,000 baby mice in just one year. Sooner is better than later when it comes to finding ways to control rodents in your buildings.

"Think like a rodent" to control rats and mice with a natural rodent repellent

Warberg Block needed a way to control rodents and keep them out of her farm home and implement cabs. She was leery of traps and poisons because she had pets and young children, so she experimented with other methods and substances. Eventually, she discovered that rodents absolutely hate the smell of balsam fir—so she made that Fresh Cab´s main scent.

Fresh Cab is the only rodent repellent that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has certified as being effective and safe indoors and in enclosed areas. It´s a humane, environmentally friendly, natural rodent repellent. To get rodents to leave the premises (or never come in), Fresh Cab uses natural essential oils that humans enjoy and rodents loathe.

"Rats and mice are among the smartest, most resilient mammals on the planet," Warberg Block says. "To get rid of rodents, you have to think like a rodent." Because they can see only a few inches, mice and rats determine their own safety based on scent—and Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch makes them very uncomfortable. Here are 3 ways to outsmart them without using dangerous traps or poisons that often don´t work very well.

1. Block the way in. Rodents can squeeze though a quarter-inch hole. That´s about the size of a pencil eraser. Keep them from ever entering a building, storage unit, or shed by filling all outside cracks and openings. Also fill and seal around every type of vent hole in soffits and on the roof. Place Fresh Cab near these spots, and also in dryer vents, drop ceilings, subfloors, and crawl spaces—anywhere that mice and rats could get in.

2. Block inside scent trails. Mice and rats follow scent trails to food, shelter, and water. A scent trail will show up as a set of smears or tracks along walls, in corners, and behind large appliances. Just put a Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch on the scent trail to frighten and frustrate rodents and make them want to find easier, safer hunting grounds.

3. Make ´em want to leave. Place Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch anywhere rodents might enjoy themselves: in the attic, basement, and garage, as well as under the sink and in the pantry. Fresh Cab is a non-toxic, natural rodent repellent, so you don't need to worry about it near food, and you´ll enjoy its clean, outdoorsy, botanical scent.

Whether the rodents are making themselves at home in your home or in your storage unit, farm implement cabs, hunting cabin, garage, tool shed, pump house, or attic, Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch provides humane, natural rodent control that works safely. To learn more about how to use Fresh Cab, visit www.earth-kind.com.

FDA SEIZES MORE THAN $1 MILLION WORTH OF FOOD FROM NASHVILLE FOOD PROCESSOR AND WAREHOUSE

Mon, 18 Jan 2010

The agency acted to prevent distribution of food from rodent-infested facility.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - At the request of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Marshals today seized bulk restaurant food product at Won Feng Trading Company, a food processor and warehouse in Nashville, Tenn. The products are adulterated under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act because they have been held under unsanitary conditions whereby they may have become contaminated with filth. The Act uses the term "insanitary" to describe such conditions.

U.S. Marshals seized all FDA-regulated foods, including a wide variety of bulk restaurant foods, such as 44-pound bags of rice, fresh produce and frozen food products that are susceptible to contamination by rodents, insects, or other filth.

The agency has not received any reports of consumer illnesses.

Won Feng receives food from throughout the United States and distributes its products within the state of Tennessee. The FDA estimates the value of the seized goods to be more than $1 million. U.S. Marshals executed this seizure pursuant to a warrant issued by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee.

"The violations at Won Feng Trading are both serious and repetitive,” said Michael Chappell, the FDA’s acting associate commissioner for regulatory affairs. “The FDA will take actions against any food companies that fail to provideadequate safeguards to ensure that products they produce or hold for sale remain free of contamination.”

The FDA had previously issued a Warning Letter to Won Feng in May 2009, citing numerous deviations from current Good Manufacturing Practice requirements, including ineffective measures taken by the firm to exclude pests. The firm stated in a June response to the FDA that it had corrected the violations cited in the Warning Letter.

In a follow-up inspection completed in November 2009, the FDA investigators found evidence of an active and widespread rodent infestation in the building, including live and dead rodents, rodent hair, rodent nesting material, evidence of rodent-gnawed food, and rodent urine. The FDA investigators also observed insect filth and live birds in the building, and found that the building had defects that could allow pests to enter food storage areas.

These unsanitary conditions and practices led to today’s seizure action.

How to Prevent House Fires Caused by Rodents: Use a Safe, Effective, Natural Rodent Repellent

Wed, 16 Dec 2009

"Rats and mice cause 8% of all house and building fires in the U.S.," says Kari Warberg Block. As the inventor of Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch (www.Earth-Kind.com), Warberg Block is an expert on rodent behavior and specifically on ways to keep rats and mice out of buildings without using methods that endanger children or pets.

The U.S. averages 1.6 million home and building fires each year. In the last 10 years, more than 194,000 people have been injured in home and building fires, and almost 37,000 people have died. Rodents started 8% of all these fires by chewing through electrical wiring and causing a short—and most homeowner insurance policies don't cover fires caused by rodents.

If you think you're safe from the expense and heartbreak of rodent-caused fires, think again. "In the U.S., 30% of all homes contain unwanted rodents," Warberg Block says. "In fact, these rats and mice are known as 'commensal' rodents. The term means 'eating at the same table with' humans, and they're called that because they thrive in close proximity to people."

To Prevent Electrical Fires Caused by Rodents, You Need a Rodent-free House

All rodents have prominent, continually growing incisor teeth. Because these teeth never stop growing, rats and mice find pleasure gnawing every day to wear down their teeth. If they don't, the incisors grow too big to gnaw food, and they can´t feed properly. That's why they like to make their home where there's plenty to chew on: between walls, in drop ceilings and subfloors, in attics and garages, behind appliances, and in pantries.

One pair of mice can make 15,000 more mice in just one year. If your home is in the 30% that's already rodent-infested, call a rodent control expert for extermination methods that work and are safe. In addition to starting fires, rats and mice carry 35 known diseases, some of them fatal, so it's important to get them out of your home pronto. Do-it-yourself solutions such as poison and traps are dangerous to children and pets, leave a mess for you to clean up, and don't work all that well.

If you're lucky enough to not yet have rats and mice "eating at your table," doing some simple home maintenance and placing a natural rodent repellent in key locations will help prevent electrical fires caused by rodents. The best way to control rats and mice in your home is to make them feel unwelcome from the get-go so they never set up house in your house.

Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch is Safe, Effective, and EPA-registered

You can keep rats and mice out of your home, garage, storage unit, vehicles, and any other enclosed places safely and effectively with a natural rodent repellent: Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch. Fresh Cab is the first natural rodent repellent to earn federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) registration for safe, effective use indoors and in enclosed areas. Fresh Cab's main ingredient is balsam fir oil, which is safe and smells great to humans but which rodents hate.

Here are some things you can do inside and outside your home to make mice and rats feel unwelcome and prevent house fires caused by rodents:

1. Caulk foundation cracks and utility line feeds. Mice can fit through a hole the size of a pencil eraser.

2. Cover ceiling vents, outside dryer vents, and soffits with wire mesh.

3. Trim trees and climbing vines so that rodents can't crawl up them to enter your home.

4. Make sure the bottom seals on all outside doors, including your garage door, are tight.

5. After you've done #1 through #4, place Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch inside your home at the site of foundation cracks, utility line feeds, ceiling vents, dryer vents, and soffits, and on either side of all outside doors.

6. Also place Fresh Cab in the pantry, under the kitchen and bathroom sinks, and in crawl spaces and drop ceilings—anywhere that mice and rats might feel inclined to settle in and breed.

For more information on how to keep your home rodent-free using a safe, natural rodent repellent, visit www.earth-kind.com.

Dakota MEP elects Kari Warberg Block of Earth-Kind, Inc., to Board of Directors

Tue, 01 Dec 2009

Kari Warberg Block, CEO of Earth-Kind, Inc., was recently elected to the Dakota MEP Board of Directors for a three-year term, beginning in January 2010.

Kari Warberg is the founder & CEO of Earth-Kind, Inc, Bismarck, ND. Her inventions, which are sold throughout 5000 stores in the USA and Canada, include FRESH CAB® rodent repellent, and Prairie Aire® all-natural air freshener. The mission of her company, Earth-Kind, is to create natural safe and effective products that have a positive impact on agriculture, society, and the environment.

Directors are selected because of their demonstrated leadership, professional expertise and ability to represent their industry – not just their business enterprise. The Dakota MEP Board of Directors is made up of manufacturers in a wide variety of industries, and represents most major functional areas. Their charge is promoting manufacturing and best practices in the Dakotas, as well as, supporting the mission and further development of Dakota MEP.

Dakota MEP is a leadership organization that provides value to those companies dedicated to creating new opportunities for their people and organization. We strive to maximize enterprise performance - including growth, innovation, productivity and profitability. Working with partners who share this mission - we specialize in helping companies develop best practices and supporting strategies which enable them to better compete today and tomorrow.

Randy Schwartz, Chief Executive Officer

701-328-5471, randys@dakotamep.com

Dakota MEP Announces New Board Members

5 Tips for Getting Rid of Rats and Mice by Using Environmentally Safe, Natural Rodent Repellent

Fri, 20 Nov 2009

Mice and rats carry more than 35 known diseases, from allergies to food poisoning to Lyme disease to Hanta virus, an often-fatal lung infection. (See www.earth-kind.comfor stories.)

It´s no surprise that mice and rats are considered a public health risk—but so are many of the products used to control them. In fact, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates rodent control products because so many are toxic to people, wildlife, and the environment.

Consumers increasingly ask for natural, less toxic methods of rat and mouse control. In fact, a Harris Interactive poll from Oct. 2007 found that 78% of consumers prefer a natural pest control solution and 82% want pest control products to be safe for the environment. A North Dakota mother and inventor has created a natural rodent repellent that works—safely.

Safe, Effective Rodent Control Makes Rodents Feel Less Welcome

Kari Warberg Block wanted to control rodents on her family farm, so she created a ´green,´ non-toxic product called Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch. Warberg Block was able to register her product with the EPA after years of testing proved that Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch not only kept rodents at bay but was safe to use indoors and in enclosed areas.

"I didn´t want to kill them—I just wanted to keep them out," says Warberg Block, who tried to repel rodents using many methods over 8 years, including peppermint and spearmint oils. "Nothing worked until I used balsam fir oil. It has just the right molecules to trigger escape/avoidance behavior that drives mice and rats away."

5 Tips for Thinking like a Rodent to Aid Rodent Control

Here's what years of research taught Warberg Block about "thinking like a rodent" to protect your health, property, children, pets, and the environment from rodents without using toxic rat poison:

1. Rodents make decisions based on smell. They can see only a few inches and take their cue from their noses, so put Fresh Cab Mouse Pouches in enclosed or indoor non-living areas. Many people have tried moth balls, scented dryer sheets, or peppermint-oil-saturated cotton balls to repel rodents, but those methods aren't registered for rodent control by the Fed. EPA because they either don't work or aren't safe.

2. Rodents use scent trails. They follow their noses to food, water, and shelter. Place Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch, a natural rodent repellent, on possible scent trails to mask their aroma. To find a scent trail, look for smears or tail tracks in dusty corners, along walls, and behind cabinets and appliances.

3. Rodents need to feel safe. They'll try to make their home in a non-living area such as an attic, garage, basement, or unused room. A single pair of mice can produce up to 15,000 offspring in one year, so make them feel less romantic by placing Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch in these areas.

4. Rodents can squeeze though a hole the size of a pencil eraser. Fill all cracks in the foundation, entryway, and sub-floors. Then put Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch near other potential entry sites, such as the garage door, dryer vent, pipes, wires, and attic vents.

5. Rodents need to eat and chew. Rats and mice obviously need to eat. They also need to gnaw constantly to keep their fast-growing incisor teeth usable. Aid your rat and mouse control program by placing Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch where rodents might try to find food or water, such as in the pantry and under the kitchen sink. Unlike rat poison, Fresh Cab is non-toxic and natural, so you don't need to worry about it near food. And it's botanical, so it smells great. Put some in the attic, too, and other places where rats and mice might gnaw on wiring and wood.

Note: If you already have a rodent infestation, go to http://www.cdc.gov/rodents/cleaning_up/

for recommended hazardous waste clean-up measures, or call your local pest management professional for help.

For more information on Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch, a non-toxic, natural rodent repellent, visit www.earth-kind.com

6 Easy Ways to Control Mice and Rats in Enclosed Areas with Safe, Natural Rodent Repellent

Fri, 20 Nov 2009

Kari Warberg Block, inventor of Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch (www.earth-kind.com), needed an environmentally safe, natural mouse repellent for her tractor and truck cabs. She knew that rodents do tremendous damage and spread at least 35 diseases, some of them fatal.

Many farmers used moth balls, scented dryer sheets, and rat poisons as rodent repellents, but Warberg Block didn't like those methods. The rat poisons were potentially dangerous to her children and pets. They left little skeletons to clean up. And, she says, "The rodents did lots of gnawing damage as they took 36 hours to die a painful death." Mothballs and dryer sheets didn't control mice. Neither did ultrasonic rodent repellent gizmos.

Warberg Block knew that others shared her desire for an effective, natural rodent repellent backed by reputable research. She invented Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch, the first and only EPA-reviewed and registered plant-based solution for rodent control indoors and in enclosed areas. Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch, a safe, natural mouse repellent, carries no safety warnings—and it works.

Natural Rodent Repellent: a "No Vacancies" Sign for Rats and Mice

"Rodents can see only a few inches, so they depend on their sense of smell to warn them of predators or threats," Warberg Block explains. "If what they smell makes them nervous, they leave—and one smell that makes them very nervous is balsam fir. That's the main scent of Fresh Cab Mouse Pouches." Fresh Cab is proven effective as a natural mouse repellent and lasts up to 100 days when properly placed. Here are three effortless ways to use Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch for safe rodent control inside your home.

3 Easy Ways to Control Mice inside Your Home

1. Place Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch in areas where rodents might look for food and water, such as in the pantry and under the kitchen sink. Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch is safe around food if the food is stored in plastic containers.

2. Rodents are excellent climbers. They enter your home through holes around soffit vents, cables, and gable vent screens, and through turbine and box vents on roofs. Mice can fit under many garage doors, too. For safe rodent control, put a Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch in or near all these areas, as well as near dryer vents, in crawl spaces, and drop ceilings.

3. Rodents follow "scent trails" in your home to find food and water. Locate scent trails by looking for smears or tracks along walls, in corners, and behind appliances and cabinets. A Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch placed on a scent trail will control rodents by masking the trail that others use to find their way around.

It's much easier to keep rodents out than it is to get rid of them once they've made themselves at home. A single pair of mice can produce 15,000 offspring in one year. Here are three ways to make sure those mice walk right past your home or outbuildings.

3 Ways to Keep Rodents out of Buildings

1. Seal all outside holes or cracks larger than 1/4 inch—about the diameter of a pencil eraser. Fill larger holes or cracks with steel wool or wire mesh before sealing with caulk or foam insulation.

2. Install high-quality weather-stripping at the base of all doors, and keep the garage door closed. (Keeping Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch by the garage door will also help control rodents.)

3. Store firewood, bricks, mulch, etc., as far from the house as possible, and off the ground. In the winter, store just enough wood next to the house to burn each day.

To increase Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch's effectiveness as a natural rodent repellent, use it in small, enclosed areas without air exchange, such as storage units, airplanes, cottages, farm equipment, vehicles, campers, and tack rooms. Fresh Cab loses effectiveness outside and in large open areas of homes and barns as its scent evaporates.

For more information on safe rodent control and the most effective uses of Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch, go to www.earth-kind.com.

Fresh Cab Featured on Balancing Act

Wed, 01 Jul 2009

Kari did a guest appearance on Lifetime's morning show, Balancing Act talking about the dangers of mice and how to prevent them from entering your home.

EPA Asks Retailers to Remove Unsafe Rodenticides From Shelves

Tue, 01 Jul 2008

Our Product Fresh Cab is a safe and humane solution to ridding your indoor storage areas from rodents. It is the only botanical rodent repellent on the market today that has been evaluated by the Federal EPA for safety and efficacy. Now that a safe and humane alternative is available to the public at an affordable price, the EPA is proposing the following risk mitigation measures:

• To minimize children’s exposure to rodenticide products used in homes, EPA would require that all rodenticide bait products available for sale to consumers be marketed only in tamper-resistant bait stations with solid bait blocks (as opposed to small pellets, for example). In addition to rodenticide baits, other affordable rodent control products such as spring traps and glue boards would remain available.

• To mitigate ecological risks, EPA would classify all bait products containing the active ingredients brodifacoum, bromadiolone, and difethialone as restricted use pesticides, available for purchase and use only by trained, certified pesticide applicators or persons under their direct supervision. These three rodenticides pose particularly significant risks to wildlife.

• To mitigate the risks associated with bait products containing any of these nine rodenticides, EPA would require that labels provide clearer directions to consumers on how to use rodenticide products while minimizing potential exposure to children, wildlife, and pets

World Demand for ND Products Continues to Grow

Sun, 15 Jun 2008

North Dakota tops nation in export growth

North Dakota is outpacing all other states in the international marketplace. The state’s exporters increased their international sales by 34 percent last year – more than any other state and nearly three times the national average of 12 percent, the U.S. Department of Commerce reports.

For the first time in North Dakota’s history, the value of its merchandise exports has topped $2 billion, an increase of $513 million from 2006. Not included in the data are the state’s exports of bulk agriculture commodities or services.

“I am extremely excited to see 34 percent growth,” said Dr. Won Koo, an economics professor at North Dakota State University and director of the school’s Center for Agriculture Policy and Trade Studies.

Last year’s merchandise exports generated about $5 billion in indirect economic activity in North Dakota, Koo said.

“The growth in exports is having a significant impact on the state’s economy,” he said. “It’s creating jobs and generating revenue.”

About one in every seven manufacturing workers in North Dakota depend on exports for their jobs, the U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration reports.

“Our success in the international marketplace is a testament to the ingenuity and drive of North Dakota’s manufacturers and processors,” Geib said. “North Dakota companies are known around the world for producing high-quality goods and services which plays a major roll in our continuing export expansion.”

North Dakota exported to 144 foreign destinations in 2007. The state's leading manufactured export category is machinery manufactures, which alone accounted for $929 million, or 46 percent of North Dakota's total export shipments in 2007. Processed foods and value-added crops rounded out the top three export categories with a combined value of about $617 million.

“North Dakota is diversifying its economy and our growth in the international marketplace is a big part of that,” North Dakota Executive Director Susan Geib said.

North Dakota’s top export destinations in 2007 included Canada with $999 million in purchases representing 49 percent of North Dakota’s export market. Other high-demand markets include Mexico, Russia, Ukraine, Australia and Germany.

Driving North Dakota’s international success are exporters who have earned a reputation for unmatched expertise and products.

“We certainly have a competitive advantage in manufacturing agriculture equipment and in producing value-added crops,” Koo said. “You’re seeing that reflected in the export growth.”

Other factors playing a role in the state’s export growth are the lower-value dollar, increased sales to high-growth emerging economies, the effects of free trade agreements and a concerted effort in North Dakota to take advantage of high-demand markets throughout the world, said Heather Ranck, International Trade Specialist with the U.S. Commercial Service in Fargo.

Since 2005, the Trade Office and U.S. Commercial Service have coordinated eight trade missions and two “reverse” trade missions including last year’s Big Iron International Visitors Program. About 130 foreign buyers took part in the farm show’s international program and efforts are underway to improve on last year’s success, said Joe Delvo, the Trade Office’s global equipment sales manager.

The Trade Office and U.S. Commercial Service also work with companies on a daily basis researching foreign markets, identifying qualified distributors, assisting in export documentation and providing other services.

Fresh Cab Receives National Home & Garden Club Seal of Approval

Sat, 01 Mar 2008

Last Fall we sent out 4pk.retail boxes of Fresh Cab to 440 independent product testers from 48 states through the National Home & Garden Club. Any product tested must receive an approval rating of 74% or above to be considered for a seal of endorsement. FRESH CAB received over a 90% approval rating. This rating is based on a combination of: effectiveness; ease of use; directions; value/price; look & feel.

We are very excited about these results because happy customers are what keeps us in business! With this seal we will also stand out to the more than 2 million members of the N H & G Club. If you love gardening, or want to become a product tester please join this club. The magazine is one of the best around!

Kari to Keynote at Horizons

Sat, 01 Mar 2008

Our founder, Kari Warberg will be the keynote speaker at the Horizons "E-Commerce Training" in Sidney, MT April 2nd & 3rd, 2008. Kari's energy and vitality for sustainable business is sure to inspire all attendees, as she shares her story of creating a successful business from rural ND using web-based tools. This will be a great hands-on ecommerce workshop to help interested parties develop or improve their business or community website and connect to the world. Bring your laptop - limited to 35 (10 laptops available.) Must preregister. $125 registration fee.

For more info please contact:

Peggy Iba MSU Extension-Regional Community Coordinator

Dawson Co. Extension Service

207 W. Bell

Glendive, MT 59330

77-1924 fax 377-2022,

www.horizonsmt.org

ND Leader Joins Presidential Cabinet

Thu, 07 Feb 2008

We are proud of our State and the leaders it produces. Ed Schafer is just one more example of what ND has to offer - in addition to the best rodent repellent in the world of course!....

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate confirmed Edward Schafer as secretary of agriculture with no objections on Monday even though Congress and the administration have differing views over a pending five-year farm bill.

The former North Dakota governor was confirmed by unanimous consent after members of the North Dakota delegation asked Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., to move his confirmation quickly so Schafer can attend the State of the Union Monday evening as a member of President Bush's cabinet.

Senators voiced no concerns about Schafer's nomination at a congenial confirmation hearing in the Senate Agriculture Committee last week. But several members of the panel encouraged him to work with Congress to smooth stalled talks on the $286 billion farm bill passed by both the House and Senate last year.

At issue are tax provisions added to both versions of the bill that are intended to raise additional money for farm programs. The Bush administration says the bills use funding gimmicks and tax increases to supplement a farm economy that is already strong, and acting Agriculture Secretary Charles Conner has shown little willingness to negotiate on that point.

The White House also says neither bill does enough to limit payments to wealthy farmers, arguing that Congress should adapt an administration proposal that would ban subsidies to farmers whose gross income exceeds an average of $200,000 a year. Bush has threatened to veto both bills.

In a statement, Bush said Schafer "distinguished himself as an executive with a proven record of results."

"He will work with the Congress to pass a responsible farm bill that will provide a safety net for farmers and protect our lands and the environment, while at the same time ensuring federal tax dollars are spent wisely," Bush said.

Bush nominated Schafer in October to replace former Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns, who left the agriculture post to run for the Senate. Schafer was a Republican governor of North Dakota from 1992 to 2000.

YES! You Can Buy American

Thu, 24 Jan 2008

Crane Creek Gardens featured in Buy American Weekly Spotlight

Our Weekly Spotlight this week falls on a company I first learned of last fall. I ordered a couple of Crane Creek Garden's Prairie Aire air fresheners in October and was really impressed with the way they eliminated an awful odor problem in our garage almost instantly. They still smell nice, more than three months later.

When Kari Warberg had a mouse problem on her rural North Dakota farm, she took a creative approach to solving the problem. Experienced with growing and drying flowers, she whipped up a natural blend of corn cob chips and plant and herbal extracts. The result was a botanical rodent repellent called Fresh Cab, which does more than keep the mice away. Fresh Cab also freshens and protects storage areas, without the odor of mothballs.

Fresh Cab is the best-selling product from Crane Creek Gardens, which was founded by Ms. Warberg in 1995. The company, which sources all of its ingredients from US farms, has a second product called Prairie Aire air-fresheners. These too are all natural, and they work by literally absorbing odors while simultaneously outputting pleasant scents.

Crane Creek Gardens, which was incorporated as Earth-Kind, Inc., in 2002, is based in Stanley, North Dakota, and has four employees. Their mission is to create natural, safe and effective products that benefit rural areas, the environment and society. To learn more about the company or to place an order, visit their web site at www.cranecreekgardens.com.

By: James Bailey

North Dakota Ranks Fourth in Nation in State Competitiveness

Wed, 16 Jan 2008

I love it here! As far as i'm concerned, North Dakota is the best place in the world to do business. Judging by this story, others know what I know:

Bismarck, N.D--North Dakota ranks fourth in the nation in state competitiveness according to the 2007 edition of the Beacon Hill Institute’s (BHI) annual State Competitiveness rankings. The state rose from fifth place in 2006 and sixth in 2005. North Dakota has been steadily climbing this ranking since it was first published in 2001 when the state ranked 21st in the nation.

“One of the most important things we’ve done to grow our economy and create jobs is build a strong business climate,” Gov. John Hoeven said. “That has meant focusing on good technology, strong infrastructure, and sound government and fiscal policy, which is what this report recognizes.”

The BHI Index tracks 42 different measures within 10 categories including infrastructure, environmental policy, government and fiscal policy, and technology.

North Dakota achieved three top ten national rankings including first in infrastructure, which includes factors such as commute times to work, monthly housing costs, electricity prices and households with installed phones. The state placed fourth in human resources factors such as a high level of labor force participation, skilled labor that is affordable and readily available, and a widespread commitment to education, training and health care. North Dakota was eighth in environmental policy, which reflects the state’s low levels of air pollution and toxic releases.

The greatest improvement over the previous year was in the area of government and fiscal policy, where North Dakota ranked 11th. The state’s strengths in this area include the number of full-time equivalents for state and local government employees, the state’s budget surplus and state and local taxes per capita income.

“According to this report, government and fiscal policy is important because businesses are more likely to be attracted to areas with moderate tax rates and clear evidence of financial discipline,” Commerce Commissioner Shane Goettle said. “State leaders and legislators have worked hard on fiscal responsibility and this study underscores the value of this in a very real way.”

The top five performing states are (in rank order): Utah, Massachusetts, Colorado, North Dakota, and Idaho. Published by The Beacon Hill Institute at Boston's Suffolk University since 2001, the report has drawn the growing attention of policymakers, economist and public officials across the nation seeking to identify strengths and weaknesses in economic performance. A copy of the report is available here.

Press Conference Held at Bismarck TSC

Mon, 10 Dec 2007

Longtime Pride of Dakota member, Kari Warberg, CEO of Crane Creek Gardens, Stanley, announced that her Fresh Cab air freshener will be sold nationwide through the Tractor Supply Co (TSC) chain. Joining Warberg at the announcement were Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson and Bismarck TSC store manager Russ Krivorouchka

Highway 6 Radio Program Features Our Founder Kari Warberg

Mon, 05 Nov 2007

Are you a farmer, rancher, or rural lifestyle advocate? Than this is the show for you! Go to www.insightcubed.com, then click on BLOG, and you will find a live link to a great radio program every Sunday at 8am that addresses sustainable agriculture, rural entrepreneurship, and much much more. The host Micheal is very knowledgeable and knows how to bring those things of interest to the 40 million Americans who desire to live and/or profit from the rural life sytle. It's a great show, and I won't miss an episode if I can help it.

FRESH CAB Gains National Exposure

Thu, 11 Oct 2007

If you are new to Crane Creek Gardens, chances are you heard about our products from a friend, relative, or the news media. Over the past 2 months stories about our product, Fresh Cab, have been printed in 1000's of newspapers, on television websites, and broadcast over the radio. The news about how safe and effective Fresh Cab is as an 'area' rodent repellent is spreading fast, and we couldn't be more grateful! Thanks to everyone out there who is telling our story!

Crane Creek Gardens Increases Efficiency to Manage Demand

Mon, 02 Jul 2007

Crane Creek Gardens was recently featured as a success story by the Dakota Manufacturing Extension Partnership .

The success story follows:

Odor is big business. This is apparent to anyone walking through any convenience store, shopping mall corridor or even past workplace cubicles. There is a smell for everyone and everything; there is also a way for everyone and everything to rid their immediate environment of unwanted smells. Kari Warberg, owner and founder of Crane Creek Gardens, saw market potential in the scent and de-scenting industry when she started the business in 1995.

Crane Creek Gardens’ product line is a bit different than that of most competitors because all of their products and packaging are made using non-toxic, biodegradable and environmentally friendly ingredients sourced from family farms. Crane Creek Gardens is committed to providing customers with superior performing products that are safe, easy to use and biodegradable. The company’s plant-based, versus other petroleum-based, products not only benefit the environment, but also support rural areas and the agricultural industry.

The business is literally gaining more distribution points and increasing product output every day. Soon, the Fresh Cab product will bear a label that will read, “Botanical Rodent Repellent - Safe and Effective.” This addition will increase Crane Creek Gardens’ distribution by 400 percent within 1.5 years. This projected growth raised concerns about whether current equipment and staff would be able to manage the increase. Crane Creek Gardens looked to Dakota MEP for help.

Dakota MEP assisted Crane Creek Gardens by implementing a strategic plan to increase the efficiency of existing equipment and staff. The plan included centralizing operations, inventory and quality control and process standardization. With Dakota MEP’s guidance, Crane Creek Gardens has increased their net margin by 12 percent. Inventory turnover increased, resulting in savings of $18,000 in 2006 and efficiency increases have produced $7200 in savings. Additional benefits include a reduction in time the line supervisor spent on non-essential tasks and an assembly line efficiency increase of 30 percent.

Warberg says, “Help from Dakota MEP has given us the knowledge and tools to better serve our customers with the best possible product at the best possible price with the best possible service. We are able to do all of this while retaining employees with higher wages and increased job satisfaction.”

FRESH CAB Receives Federal EPA Registration

Tue, 01 May 2007

On April 26th our all-natural product FRESH CAB was approved for sale as a "botanical rodent repellent" by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency. This registration allows us to label our product for that use, and give recommendations. It also ensures consumers that the product has been tested for consumer and environmental safety issues before being sold. Thankfully, Fresh Cab was found to have no known hazards!

The new outer package/label will be available by July 1st for sale in most states. You may notice a slight increase in retail price due to your states' regulatory fees. You may also notice a newly designed website next time you visit. Lastly, I want you to know that we appreciate your business because we wouldn't be successful without your continued satisfaction and support! We will always strive to earn this from you.

Kind Regards, Kari Warberg / Founder & CEO

EPA Approved Fresh Cab Mouse Pouch – The Story of How Mother Nature Built a Better Rodent Repellent

Sun, 01 Apr 2007

Since the time that man first made contact with mice and other rodents he has looked for ways to be rid of them. History has given the consumer numerous options, from traps and glues to numerous poisonous concoctions, that while effective in getting the job done often neglect issues of health and safety in the process.

Enter Kari Warberg, an entrepreneur from Stanley, ND who in 1993 decided that it was time to turn the traditional image of what a mouse repellent could and should be on its ear. She quickly understood the need for an easy to use solution that was not only effective in repelling mice and other rodents but also more importantly safe for the consumer and the environment.

The end result of Warberg’s research and testing yielded the revolutionary product FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch, a rodent repellent unlike any other. The FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch contains an active plant ingredient, balsam fir, that delivers an aroma, which drives rodents crazy, confusing their natural instincts, whereby they quickly vacate any area where FRESH CAB™ mouse pouches are placed - minimizing the chance of damage and/or potential disease caused by rodents invading a person’s property.

The FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch has been proven effective for up to 30 days by independent EPA lab testing (in infested areas), and an average of 90 days by independent field studies and customer surveys, and has been endorsed by the National Home & Garden Club, Good Sam Club, and USDA. It’s effectiveness as a rodent repellent is superior, but what really makes the FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch stand apart from other rodent repellents is that THE FRESH CAB™ MOUSE POUCH IS THE ONLY EPA EVALUATED AND APPROVED BOTANICAL (PLANT BASED) SOLUTION TO INDOOR RODENT PROBLEMS ON THE MARKET.

Chemical bait stations contain toxic chemicals that are considered by the EPA to be dangerous to children, pets and other non-target animals. As a result, the EPA has recently asked retailers across the country to remove toxic bait on store shelves and will enforce stricter guidelines in the future for the sale of animal bait that contains harmful poisons.

Glue boards and mechanical devices offer alternative solutions but are messy to use and their effectiveness is limited. Other repellents such as mothballs and electronic repellers are under fire for potential health risks or their general effectiveness. The FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch is a botanical or “plant based” rodent repellent for indoor use, and is the absolute preferred method of repelling rodents from areas where kids or pets are present, or where poisons and traps are not desirable.

The FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch is sold in Tractor Supply Company (TSC) and Menard’s stores across the country. TSC was the first National chain to retail the FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch, which has quickly become one of their more popular pest products.

From start to finish the FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch is a product that has been specifically designed to be environmentally safe, using “green” ingredients that are not only harmless for people but also for the environment by means of a “From the Earth to the Earth” blueprint that is eco-friendly.

From the materials that make up its packaging, which consists of recycled paper, soy ink, and 100% wind energy used its outer package, the FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch utilizes a “Lean” manufacturing process. The end result is an environmentally “green” product that is 98% bio-based.

Also as important to Warberg is the contribution her product gives back to society. Earth Kind Inc. works closely with an organization that provides developmentally disabled individuals the opportunity to assemble the FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch product, not only giving them an employment opportunity they might not otherwise receive but also a sense of pride in a job well done.

Warberg’s ability to create innovative products while staying committed to the environment is a testament to her passion for developing products that are as beneficial to the ecosystem as they are to the consumer. The FRESH CAB™ mouse pouch embodies the very best of what a consumer product should and can be, combining superior functionality with eco-savvy execution.

FRESH CAB seeking EPA Registration

Wed, 28 Feb 2007

Our star product FRESH CAB has been evaluated by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency to be labeled as a Botanical Rodent Repellent. You will notice a slight change in the outside package starting in May to reflect this use. Through this process, the product has been scientifically proven to be safe to use indoors in non-living areas AND very effective for temporary relief from rodents. Available Mid-April

Welcome Country Woman Readers!

Mon, 28 Aug 2006

It is a true pleasure to have you visit our website! The Sept/Oct Issue of Country Woman Magazine has been keeping us very busy on the phone, and with new customer orders. Kari is "so" enjoying talking to readers who share her kindred spirit of the country life! So much so, that she wants to personally take ALL the calls! In any case, we are so happy that Country Woman shared our story with you, and we welcome you!

Prairie Public TV Featured Our Founder In Program

Tue, 08 Aug 2006

Our Founder, Kari Warberg, will be one of the guests featured in an upcoming PPTV Premiere Program airing September 13th at 8pm.

The program is called "Adding-Value" and features ND entrepreneurs who are changing our views of "business as usual. Tune in to get an inside look at how we do things at Crane Creek Gardens. it's anything but usual!

$1,000 Winner Announced

Thu, 13 Apr 2006

Many stories were submitted, but the one that caught our attention was from Karen Kallestad: "A few months ago my husband took the truck in for an oil change. The mechanic came out and said, "You''d better replace your air filter. I tried to clean it out, but those things are really packed in there." By "those things" he meant sunflower seeds. The air filter was jammed solid with them. The squirrel had apparently been using the truck for his food pantry as well as an escape route. Well, I''d ordered Crane Creek products before so the solution was readily at hand. I popped the hood and found a little niche in the engine compartment to tuck some Fresh Cab into.

Price of

AIR FILTER: $40.00

FRESH CAB: $12.50

Look on the squirrel's face the next time my dog came charging out of the door and he had to scrample for a new escape route: PRICELESS. Mr. Squirrel has to work much harder to get his sunflower snack now that my truck no longer serves as escape route or food storage. Fresh Cab is great - no cruel, messy traps, no dangerous poison, it's natural, pet-safe and best of all it really works."

New Rhodale Book Home Enlightenment Highlights FRESH CAB

Wed, 12 Oct 2005

Home Enlightenment, a 532 page hard bound book by best selling author Annie B. Bond offers practical, earth-friendly advice for creating a nurturing, healthy, and toxin free home and lifestyle. Folks, this is one of those books you need to read. Not just because our products are featured on page 391, and 484, but because it is a well written, practical and informative guide that inspires one to take sacred notice of how everything we do in the home has an impact on our health,and the environment. We love it so much, we are giving a copy to EVERYONE on our gift list this Christmas!

Go to Annies website for more information or to get your copy: http://www.anniebbond.com/ or call Rodale publishing at 1-800-848-4735

Retail Partners $100 Winners

Fri, 02 Sep 2005

Congratulations to: Hy Vee # 1474 in Omaha, Nebraska; Chris Sea's Aromatherapy & Fine Gifts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Sweet Wind in Kamuela, Hawaii; and Bliss of Detroit Lakes, Minnesota! All were chosen in random drawings to receive $100 of free product of their choice. The first 3 were chosen in our summer promotion, and the last was chosen from among our returned surveys. Please shop at these fine retailers, and stop in to say "congratulations" if they are in your town.

Welcome Independent Banker Magazine Readers

Tue, 05 Jul 2005

We would like to welcome you to our site, and thank you for your interest in learning more about us and our products. As you know, financing a growing business can be a risky proposition, but trying our products will not. We guarantee you a return on your investment - or your money back! This is why our business has grown, and why most people hear about us by 'word of mouth' advertising. If you are a property owner, whether that be farm, home, auto, recreational vehicle, or boat there will be a time you need our product. Again, we thank you for visiting, and welcome your orders and/or comments. 1-800-583-2921

Introducing a New Prairie Aire Scent

Wed, 16 Feb 2005

Sweet Clover is the newest addition to the Prairie Aire family. This fragrance blends green leafy notes with a touch of chamomile, juniper berry, geranium, and a hint of fresh apple to create an unusual and pleasant combination.

YES! But How? :: Discouraging Mice

Mon, 05 Nov 2001

DISCOURAGING MICE

Dear Doug and Annie,

Can you suggest any non-toxic, non-lethal methods for discouraging mice? I don't want to harm them, just eliminate them from my home. —Jaime, Brattleboro, Vermont

Dear Jaime:

I have a solution for you that I recently discovered myself. It's a new herbal product blend called Fresh Cab. The following story will give you a sense of how well it worked for me.

We have two screen doors in our downstairs. They are pulled closed and the doors to the outside left open for most of the summer. We've used this system to cool the house at night every summer for years. The night I put Fresh Cab herbal mouse repellent in our house, mice chewed holes in both screen doors, desperate to escape outdoors, away from the smell. They left a pile of mouse droppings inside the house by the screens, showing us it was indeed mice who did the chewing, and that it took them some time to complete the job.

Country mice never bothered me much until I read about the first cases of Hanta virus (carried by rodents), and about mice eating electrical wires and causing a fire hazard. We've worked hard to rid our house of mice ever since.

But getting rid of mice without poisoning or killing them is far from easy. We've used every trick in the book, including two Havahart Traps from which we collect and drop off live mice miles from our house every morning, mint (mice hate mint), and turning off the lights in the basement and then plugging up every place where we see light shining through from outside. Plugging up the holes helped the most until we discovered Fresh Cab.

Fresh Cab is made of essential oils and spices mixed into corncob chips. The final blend of scents has been proven effective in chasing away mice, flies, moths, and mosquitoes. The blend comes in 2.5 oz. pouches, which are sold four to a box. These pouches are designed to put in camper cabs, cabins, under hoods, and in trunks.

If you can tolerate the strong smell in the main part of your house, you are lucky, and you will not have mice! You might be able to tolerate a pouch under your kitchen sink, or in a closet. I found I couldn't have the pouches in our living area, but I have eight pouches in the basement and eight in the attic. I am hopeful that the squirrels will stay out of the attic and the mice out of the basement. What a peaceful winter I will have, if this turns out to be true.