CORNWALL — Sunrise Orchards Inc. of Cornwall recently received a portion of the $9.9 million in financing that the Vermont Economic Development Authority approved last quarter to help support commercial, agricultural, energy and small business projects in Vermont. The apple producer received its financing as part of nearly $3 million approved through VEDA’s agricultural loan program, the Vermont Agricultural Credit Corporation, of VACC.
VACC approved seasonal working capital to help long-established Sunrise Orchards grow, harvest, process and ship its apples. A family business in which the co-owner Barney Hodges worked as a boy, Sunrise Orchards has been in operation since 1974. With nine full-time employees, 10 seasonal full-time, and 60 harvest workers, the business grows, packs, stores, and distributes all of its fruit through regional retail and additional wholesale channels.