Hi, I'm Ken Builder and this is In Business.

I'm doing my weekly grocery shopping.

I try to get all my groceries in one visit to the grocery store at one time and that way I get it all done.

It's easy and it's over for the week.

On in business this week though, we're going to talk about part of that shopping experience.

That's of course the roundup.

No, we're not talking rawhide or you know cattle drives from the Old West.

Not that kind of roundup.

We're talking about the round up at the cash register at the end of your grocery shopping day.

And that's when you're asked to round up.

And where does that money go?

Well, that's what we're going to talk about this week.

We've got some guests from two area grocery stores that have been rounding up for a long time.

And that money goes to benefit charities.

We'll have special guests from Super One Foods and from the Whole Foods Co-op.

They'll talk about the Roundup program, how it started, how it works, and who they benefit.

And then we'll talk about some of the beneficiaries.

And this is where it all happens.

At checkout, I bring my weekly worth of uh grocery purchases to a kind clerk.

Hi there.

Hi.

Would you like to round up today?

I would like to round up.

Thank you very much.

It asks me, would I like to round up?

And the answer is always yes.

And this was for the adult and teen challenge of Minnesota.

That's what we're going to talk about.

This is in business.

I'm Ken Ber.

Welcome to In Business.

I'm Ken Buer.

If you've ever been at the register and been asked to round up your purchase for a local cause, you're not alone.

It's a simple question, but one that's having a real impact on businesses across our region.

Tonight, we're taking a closer look at Roundup programs.

how they work, why businesses offer them, and most importantly, where that money goes.

To start, we visited some of the organizations receiving these funds, including one that's helping herds grow and making a bisonized difference in our local agriculture community.

Let's take a look.

My name is David Wise.

I'm uh owner operator of Native Wise Ranch.

Native Wise Ranch is an LLC that we established a few years back um grazing bison and we're doing rotational grazing here up on the FondeLac Reservation.

Well, the funding really from the Whole Foods Co-op really helps us out with our fencing a lot and a lot of these um very meaningful projects to our ranch.

We started out with our infrastructure being pretty much non-existent, even maybe an obstacle in some ways cuz the old fencing was so in disrepair that we had to spend a lot of time taking it out.

And now we're um realizing our our hopes and dreams by putting in new rotational fencing so that we can do a good job with our bison management.

The program really helped us to um realize our dreams a lot quicker by being able to do more fencing um to be able to hire local community members and to get our rotational grazing system up and running.

Yeah, the money has really helped a lot to um just be able to get things done in a timely manner.

It's helped us to expand our herd more rapidly and to have good nutrition for the animals.

And we're all about keeping um the good carrying capacity on the land.

We don't want to overdo it.

So, the more we can um rotational graze, the the more bison that we can have for a local food source here in our community.

Bison haven't been around here in generations, you know, so we're we're working to bring them back to the landscape.

Not only do they help make the landscape healthier, but they also provide such a great food source for our community.

This is in business and we're profiling other businesses and organizations that benefit from Roundup programs.

That's when you go to the cash register at your grocery store and they ask you, "Do you want a roundup?"

and you say, "Yes."

Well, here's where the money goes and here's what it does.

Joining us now is John Cole.

He is executive director of CHUM here in Duth and also April Leoo, who is director of the food shelf program at CHUM.

Thank you both very much for joining us.

John, I'm going to start with you.

How did this partnership between you and Whole Foods Co-oph get underway and what does it mean to CHUM?

Well, we were so grateful that Whole Food Co-ops decided to start this initiative um with CHUM.

I think we were the very first um um beneficiary of this program.

Um we sort of piloted the whole thing uh for Whole Foods Co-op and it has meant a tremendous amount uh for us uh that our corporate neighbors have decided to join in our effort to address um food um shortage in our community.

And so, uh, every year Whole Foods Co-op does their roundup and we're so grateful that it enables their their members, uh, to participate in a direct way to provide food on the table for those in need.

April Leoo is director of the food shelf at Chum.

And is it kind of ironic that a roundup campaign at a grocery store would help a food shelf in downtown Duth?

It's abs.

I It's so ironic, but they do such an amazing job.

Uh when they came last year and told me the amount that they had rounded up, I was floored.

Like so ecstatic about what we could do with that and how much it helps just with the food shelf and for our community, what we can do for them.

How many people uh come to your food shelf on a regular basis?

We're roughly around 300 people a week.

Uh yesterday was really busy with the warmer temperatures coming back in.

We're definitely going to start getting busier.

Uh we went through roughly 70 boxes yesterday and an hour and a half.

And uh we also do shelter bags.

So we went through um 19 shelter bags yesterday.

So we see over 100 people, you know, just on Wednesdays itself.

And uh we have Monday through Friday program.

So we're just chugging away.

John and April, let's uh round back to round up and uh tell me what it means to each of you to be able to have a partnership with Whole Foods Co-op and actually in specifics, what does that mean for the people you serve through CHUM?

Having the connection with Whole Foods definitely just makes us be able this this road just makes us be able to have like order more food that we can provide more food for people inside the boxes.

We want to have enough food that it'll cover for a week's worth for them.

you know, and we have people who have larger families who have like five and more.

So, we try to give them two boxes and just still provide enough for one week.

John, you mentioned earlier about how everybody can participate.

How does that make you feel uh when that happens and when those checks come in from Whole Foods, we're incredibly happy.

You know, we were at at the food shelf uh for every dollar that comes in, we're able to stretch that um um seven times.

And um at least we used to be able to do that.

Um but um we are able to take that money that comes in and to um get more food than if someone just goes to the supermarket and buy food.

So we have the power to stretch that that dollar even more.

So when Whole Foods um sends that check in, immediately we see the possibility of more food being able to be ordered and the food trucks coming in um with with more food and and and the folks who are coming be able to get the nutritious stuff that they need.

John Cole is executive director of Chum and Duth and April Doo is director of the food shelf program at Chum.

Thank you both for being on in business.

This is in business.

Thank you for joining us this week.

Our topic is rounding up at the register, a small action that can add up to a big impact for local organizations.

Joining us tonight are two local leaders who help make these programs possible.

Sarah Hanigan is the general manager of Whole Foods Co-op, which has long supported local nonprofits through its Roundup programs.

And Susie Marshall is the digital marketing director for Miners Incorporated and Super One Foods, which also connects customers with community giving at the register.

Thank you both for joining us here this evening.

We're glad you're with us.

Thank you for having us.

Susie, start with you.

How did it all get started at Miners and Super One to reach out to the community in this fashion?

Yes.

So, Super 1's been hosting register campaigns for about 20 years now.

Customers might remember those used to be UPC based such as the American Heart Association Heart Paper Hearts or the Soul Hospice House ornaments during those campaigns.

In 2022, we made a big shift to our donations being on the pinpat.

So, the option to round up made it easier for customers and it also opened the opportunity for us to host more localized campaigns.

And for you, Sarah, how long has Whole Foods Co-op been involved in a program like this?

Yeah, we started our roundup campaign in 2013.

Um, we rounded up for the month of March to uh participate in the Minnesota Food Share program with uh CHUM as our recipient.

And we rounded up just for Chum just in March uh for four years and then we launched an ongoing campaign in 2017 based on the enthusiasm of our shoppers and the generosity of them.

So it started small and then expanded.

Yes, absolutely.

Is that also the case with Super One where you started with one or two and then it just expanded to the number that you do today or Yes, definitely.

And I think the opportunity when we added it to the pin pads made it so we could host more campaigns and those local efforts as well.

Really recognizing those.

How does it feel from the customer standpoint?

Uh what do they what's their feedback?

Uh I'll start with you Sarah.

Yeah.

So one thing that um really encouraged us to expand our program was the shopper enu enthusiasm.

Um in those first months we raised about $10,000.

And when people heard the total they thought, "Wow, why don't we do this all the time?

and why don't you round up for this nonprofit or that nonprofit, you know, ones that that were near and dear to them.

And so we felt like we had a mechanism to really engage the shopper um in raising money, but also raising awareness for these local nonprofits.

So shoppers are really excited uh to learn about the new nonprofit every week or every month um and to really show and participate in uh making a difference.

And Susie, what are your uh Super One customers telling you about the program?

Yes, I think it goes to show every single campaign, they dig deep.

They show up with their generosity and I think that our customers really recognize that those small interactions at the register add up to something so big and we're so grateful for that and their support.

And how do you think that impacts the communities that you serve?

Because you've got stores across the entire upper Northwest.

That's right.

I think our ability to have these local campaigns, it goes to support those community initiatives and strong communities and strong neighborhoods are so good for everybody involved and we're so proud of that.

Sarah, you have that same feeling, I take it.

Absolutely.

Um we have two neighborhood grocery stores in Duth and um we find that 40% of our shoppers participate in the additional giving through the roundup and that small change has made a big difference.

We've raised over a million dollars from our two relatively small stores um since we launched our our ongoing campaign.

And I just recently saw where you're celebrating your 10th anniversary of the Denfeld store.

That's correct.

Yeah, we've been a twostore uh two store co-op uh since 2016 and uh but we've been in the community since 1970.

You know, starting really small and then and growing.

Now about the growth of the program and the growth of the stores.

Obviously uh with Super One there are stores as I said all across the region.

Uh now you've gone to two stores.

When you went to two stores did you see double the amount?

We saw a lot of a lot more shoppers, a lot more sales and of course a lot more roundup.

Um, and around that time we recognized that it was uh really a powerful program and we expanded it so that it didn't just serve local nonprofits, but it also then supports our food access programs which make food more accessible for our shoppers of limited means.

And then um we also expanded it to create a grant program that supports farmers and food producers like Native Wise.

And Susie, with all your stores, um, obviously this is a part of your business philosophy.

How does that work?

Is does this become an important part of the philosophy of the Miners family or is this uh a small part?

How big a place does this play in your business plan?

I think it's definitely a foundation that we've built our company on through the minor family charitable giving and as well as a company.

It's so important to us since the beginning to give back to the communities we do business in.

So, we are definitely very proud of this initiative and to have on our platforms the opportunities to bring our customers in and make those donations as well.

So, obviously you're planning on continuing this into the future if you've already been doing it for 20 years successfully.

Absolutely.

Yes.

So, each fall we review interested organ organizations that have reached out to our company and we have a register campaign committee who meets to review those organizations and we set a calendar for the following year.

So, we have nine campaigns scheduled for 2026 and it's something that we look forward to continuing well into the future.

I was checking out at the uh Plaza Super 1 and I saw it was for uh adult and teen challenge in Minnesota.

Um what are some of the other ones coming up that you can talk about?

Yes.

So, this month we're doing the Minnesota Adult Teen Challenge here locally or actually across Minnesota and out in the UP of Michigan we have um Great Lakes Recovery we're fundraising for and Ashland Wisconsin partners in recovery.

So, we're able to really make it local, but have that theme of recovery for this month.

Um, we have our animal allies campaign coming up soon that will also support local pet shelters and organizations in different markets and never surrender, Inc.

coming up, our annual American Heart Association campaign, Salvation Army.

We've got several coming up and those are great.

And I was at uh just so you know, Animal Allies Humane Society is one of the features that we're going to go to later on the program.

Wait till you meet Dorothy.

She is so cute.

And that's what you do.

Now, I'm going to ask you the same question, Sarah.

How important is this to your business as far as the business plan goes?

Sure.

So, our business is really community- based.

We are a cooperative.

We are owned by our shoppers.

Um, over 14,000 households in the Twin Ports are owners of the co-op.

And, um, they are owners because they're connected to the community.

And so this program really dovetales nicely with our long-term commitment to the local community, the local food system, and it is absolutely something that we will we will continue.

Susie detailed how Super One picks their charities.

How do you go about picking yours and what does the schedule look like for the rest of this year if you can say?

Yeah.

So, um similarly we uh plan ahead and uh we engage our um our staff and also our owners in picking the beneficiaries.

And so um in the fall or in the summer we take applications.

We then have a first pick that's done by our employees and our employees love to participate in uh both raising the money but also picking the the entities that will benefit from the program.

And then our owners through their annual election, they get to vote.

So when an owner says, "I really want this um nonprofit to be featured, we can get them to apply, but then also encourage them to get out, you know, the this the community support."

So they're building community and building um and um you know, building awareness uh over the course of the year.

You brought up a very good point and I want to ask one final question of each of you.

How much of an employee morale builder is this, Susie?

Yes.

I think it's huge.

Our cashiers used to be the ones asking for the donations at the checkout when it was the UPC based and now it is a little bit easier on them to still support these great organizations when it's right on the pin pad facing customerf facing.

So, it's great.

We hear a lot of feedback from our customers definitely our store managers um who are engaged in each of their communities and supporting these local nonprofits.

And we heard from Sarah as well.

Susie Marshall is the digital marketing director for Miners Incorporated, Super One Foods across the region, and Sarah Hanigan is the general manager for the Whole Foods co-ops on either side of the Point of Rocks here in Duth.

Thank you both very much for joining us.

And thank you.

Thank you.

Before our final story, here's a quick look at top business news from across the region.

Members of the Minnesota Nurses Association at Aspirus Lake View Hospital in Two Harbors voted to ratify a tentative agreement last Friday.

The vote comes after six months of negotiating for the representation of insurance and retirement benefits as well as improving wages.

Following the ratification, they now transition towards contract enforcement so the nurses can continue to provide quality care to patients.

The Duth City Council has approved a $75,000 facilities assessment to determine possible infrastructure issues at the Duth Entertainment and Convention Center, the deck.

The approval also comes with a matching grant from St.

Louis County for the same amount.

The deck is seeking $6 million in state funding to replace infrastructure such as escalators, elevators, air conditioning, and water pipes.

The facilities assessment will help to streamline these projects.

The Wisconsin state Senate passed a bipartisan plan to release $133 million to combat POS contamination.

These are the so-called forever chemicals.

The funding will go towards community grants and well replacements in places where water sources are contaminated.

Along with this, the DNR is encouraging residents who rely on private wellwater to test for PAS.

If the contamination levels are high, the agency says it will help to cover the costs of solutions.

Duth public schools is recommending nearly $4.2 million in budget cuts for the 202627 school year.

district faces increasing financial pressure from 15% increase in insurance premiums to inflation outpacing state and federal funding and the rising cost of specialized student services.

The budget cuts will be spread out across the district with the district level estimated at $1.2 million reduction while secondary and elementary levels face a $1.7 million and $1.2 million reduction respectively.

Lastly, the 2026 shipping season now underway and parts of the seaway were already opened up to ships.

And with that, lake freigherss here in the Twin Ports have begun their first voyages of the season.

The James L. Obustar came through the harbor on Monday and is making its way towards Marquette, Michigan to load up with iron ore.

After a bit of a down season in 2025, port leaders are very hopeful for a more productive 2026 season.

And now for our final segment, another look at how Roundup Program recipients are making a big difference locally.

This time, helping some four-legged friends find a better future.

There's an old expression in vaudeville, never be an act that follows either children or puppies.

Well, on In business, we throw that all out because we are with puppies and we are at Animal Allies here in Duth.

This is in business and with me is Nicole Faciato and Nicole is the executive in charge of communications for the Animal Allies.

And with her is that old rule that should never be broken, never follow puppies.

That's Dorothy.

That's right.

And you say she's a long-haired Chihuahua.

That's what we're thinking.

Yes.

Nicole Faciato is with us.

We're at Animal Allies here in Duth and my question is uh because we're doing program today on round up.

You are a beneficiary of the Super One stores and they have rounded up for you for how long?

Yeah, so it's been three years now.

So heading into our fourth year.

We're really excited.

It was such a kind of cool surprise when we found out that we were going to be the beneficiary of of the roundup.

But I know during that month they kind of focus on animal welfare for the the whole month which is so cool to to shed light on kind of how important that is to the community and it's been such a gift uh you know super one and combining with the community and just seeing how much people are willing to give is really cool.

And how much has that been?

What does it mean?

Yeah.

So over the three years I think we're sitting at just over 84,000 which is amazing that that goes so far.

You know, when you're a nonprofit and you rely solely on donations and grants to keep the doors open and keep doing what we do every day, that is a truly a huge gift.

Nicole, talk a little bit about what you do with the money from the roundup campaign at Super One and the other gifts that come to Animal Allies here in Duth.

Yeah, so you know, every donation kind of goes to ensuring that we can do our our day-to-day work, which is providing loving care to animals in need.

And we see well over a thousand dogs and cats coming through our doors every single day.

And with, you know, the roundups like Super One, that simply ensures that the doors stay open.

It's it's not unheard of for doors to close for organizations like this because the costs are so so high.

And we we do a lot.

Every single dog and cat that's adopted out will be spayed and neutered, fully vaccinated, microchipped, seen by a vet.

Um, and then simply, you know, the cost that just goes into taking care of them.

Let's go back to roundy up the round up.

And that would be pennies become nickels become dimes become quarters.

It's amazing how that works.

Yeah, we we love the concept of of the round up because it it really does remind people that even if you're giving a little, if a lot of people give a little, it can add up so quickly.

And that's something that we truly do love to remind people of.

Even if it feels small for you and you're not you're not sure it's really going to make a difference, it it truly is.

especially in a time like this where so many people are doing it together when you when we saw that you know first I think the first year it was 33,000 we had no idea what to expect and we certainly didn't expect that so it really is just such an awesome representation of when community comes together for something they care about um what a big impact it can make this is in business I'm Ken Ber with me Brianna Johnson Brianna is the executive director of the American Heart Association and one of the charities we've been talking about that is funded through a roundup program.

This one from Super One Foods here in Duth.

Rihanna, thanks for joining us.

Thanks for having me.

Now, you've been a member of this program for quite some time.

Yeah.

Uh Super One Foods has participated in our roundup campaign for many years, longer than I've been with the Heart Association.

And for the American Heart Association, what does a partnership like that mean financially?

Uh the Roundup campaign that Super One Foods does is really impactful for us.

It is our largest single fundraising um campaign that we do year round.

Uh so Super One Foods participates in a number of stores every fall uh leading up to our Heartwalk campaign every year.

And the Roundup campaign is really important because it's an opportunity for companies to align with our brand to support the mission and our life-saving work, but also to give customers an opportunity to really participate and give back in a meaningful way that's also accessible.

And what does that mean?

Not everybody can afford to write a $10,000 check to support the work that we do.

But by giving back through a roundup campaign, everybody can be a part of something that ultimately results in that.

By adding up all of those thousands of interactions and transactions at 25 cents a piece, it adds up and we've received donations from Super One Foods in excess of $90,000.

Brianna Johnson is the executive director here in the Northland of the American Heart Association.

We're talking up about the roundup program at several businesses across our area where you're asked to round up to the nearest dollar and as we heard that's quite impactful.

What are some of the other things that a roundup campaign through the American Art Association has allowed you to do?

Um, one of the things that it does in round numbers, um, we like to say that for every $50 that we raise, we can help train someone in the life-saving skill of CPR.

Right now, if someone has an out of hospital cardiac arrest, their odds of survival are only 10%.

And that's because not enough people know CPR.

So, we are on a mission to teach more people CPR.

And every dollar that we raise through the campaign helps to do that, to train people in CPR.

But also, it's awareness.

It's making people aware of our campaign and the work that we're doing.

And it gives people an opportunity to give back and do something good in the name of someone they love.

I'm Ken Ber.

Thank you for watching In Business.

Now, if you missed any parts of tonight's show, well, you can always watch it at pbsnorth.org or we invite you to listen on Mondays at 5:30 on the North 1033.

Thanks again for watching and until next time, let's take care of each other.