Mainebiz

V O L . X X X I N O. X I I J U N E 2 , 2 0 2 5 6 U.S. Sen. Susan Collins announced that the Maine Army Corps of Engineers received $23 million to prevent erosion at Camp Ellis in Saco. The funding supports the construction of a 750-foot spur jetty and the replenishment of an estimated 300,000 cubic yards of sand fill. Collins also said that U.S. Department of Transportation's Advanced Research Projects Agency- Infrastructure is moving forward with an $8 million partnership with the University of Maine's Advanced Structures and Composites Center to further develop technologies that will deliver bridges at half the cost, in half the time and with twice the lifespan of many current bridges. The Biddeford Regional Center of Technology was awarded a $10,000 grant from the Gene Haas Foundation to support scholarships and spon- sorships for students enrolled in its Manufacturing Technology program. Atlantic Federal Credit Union Foundation in South Portland award- ed a $15,000 grant to the Good Shepherd Food Bank to help mitigate losses from reduced USDA programs and The Emergency Food Assistance Program. The Foundation also awarded a $20,000 grant to launch a pilot ex- pansion of the Boys and Girls Club of Southern Maine's Bridge to Success program, extending its reach to middle school students. Khmer Maine in Portland announced that it received a $40,000 grant from the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation in Freeport to support the capital cam- paign for Maine's first Asian American Community Center. The New England Environmental Finance Center at the University of Southern Maine announced that it is working with Portland Public Schools on a comprehensive environmental audit and action plan to reduce waste and improve sustainability in 17 of the district's elementary, middle and high B U S I N E S S M A I N E Business news from around the state SP ONSORED BY A former ship's cook makes traditional Asian fermented foods B y L a u r i e S c h r e i b e r A s an Illinois native growing up in Texas, Ger Liang Tysk's diverse background includes service in the U.S. Air Force and working as a cook on a historic whaleship during its passages. In certain ports of call, it was hard to find groceries. "I had been making kimchi many years at home," she says. "So I started making it on the ship and it was popular because it goes with everything." Moving to Maine was only natural: Her partner owns a house in Appleton and many friends already lived in Maine because of the state's fleet of tall ships. Entering her 40s, she noticed the prevalence of food startups throughout Maine. "I thought, I could start in my kitchen, no money down," she recalls. Thus began a journey to her own startup, Red Kettle Foods LLC, a small-batch maker of traditional Korean kimchi, Japanese pickles and other Asian ferments under the name Red Kettle Kimchi, using Maine ingredients such as daikon, cucumbers, carrots, onions and ginger. The state walked her through setting up a fully licensed commercial kitchen required for fermented food, and how to get recipes tested in an FDA-approved lab. Starting in a 200-square-foot kitchen in Rockland, she sold her first products in January 2023. "Before I knew it, I was ordered out the door," she says. In May 2023, she moved to the Crosby Center in Belfast, at 96 Church St., which already had a fully licensed commer- cial kitchen and provided expansion opportunities. She pitched to buyers, gave out samples and got into a cou- ple of local general stores and Rising Tide Co-op in Damariscotta. "Then demand skyrocketed," she says. "I doubled my revenue in 2024 and I'm track to double it again." Two employees help make kimchi and two help pack it. Red Kettle is cranking out 20 to 30 cases per week — a case is twelve 16-ounce glass jars — and started offering a quart size for farmers markets. Much is sold wholesale through Native Maine Produce, a Westbrook-based food distributor, to 50 to 60 stores, co-ops and restaurants from Calais in Washington County to Lexington, Mass. For retail accounts, her husband is the delivery driver. A community focus includes working with local food pan- tries and doing cooking classes with local nonprofits. The next phase is to open an Asian-focused retail store and com- munity space for more cooking classes, pop-ups and events. Selected for this year's Top Gun Bangor cohort, run by the Maine Center for Entrepreneurs, Tysk continues to expand her business chops. "I'm dedicated to supporting Maine agriculture," she says. "I want to make sure our neighbors know they can get Asian food at their budget level." I thought, I could start in my kitchen, no money down. — Ger Liang Tysk Red Kettle Foods LLC Red Kettle Foods' Korean Nappa Cabbage Kimchi. P H O T O / F R E D F I E L D P H O T O / F R E D F I E L D Ger Liang Tysk makes traditional Asian fermented foods in Belfast. N O T E W O R T H Y S O U T H E R N S O U T H E R N N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E S T A T E W I D E

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