Begun in 1914 when seven Missouri farmers got together to buy binder twine, the agricultural cooperative MFA today ties together 45,000 farmers in Missouri and adjacent states. It is one of the US's oldest regional co-ops, supplying its member/owners with agronomy, distribution, financing, and purchasing services. It runs some 100 retail farm supply centers and works with independent dealers. MFA supplies animal feeds, seed, fertilizer, and crop protection products. In addition to feed, fertilizer, and seed, the co-op also provides its members with agronomy services, animal-health products, and farm supplies. It also offers marketing services, and is the publisher of Today's Farmer.

Kraft Foods Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets snacks, confectionery, and quick meal products worldwide. Kraft Foods company offers snacks, including cookies, crackers, salted snacks, and chocolate confectionary; beverages, including coffee, packaged juice drinks, and powdered beverages; cheese, including natural, process, and cream cheeses; and grocery, including spoonable and pourable dressings, condiments, and desserts. It also offers convenient meals, including primarily frozen pizza, packaged dinners, lunch combinations, and processed meats. Kraft Foods markets its products primarily under various brand names, including Kraft, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Maxwell House, Jacobs, Nabisco, Oreo, Milka, and LU. Kraft Foods company, through its subsidiary, Cadbury Plc, also offers chocolate products under the Cadbury Dairy Milk, Flake, Creme Egg, and Green & Black's brands; gum products under Trident, Dentyne, Hollywood, and Bubbaloo brands; and candy products under the Halls, Cadbury Eclairs, Bassett's, and The Natural Confectionery Co. brand names. It sells its products to supermarket chains, wholesalers, super centers, club stores, mass merchandisers, distributors, convenience stores, gasoline stations, drug stores, value stores, and other retail food outlets.

Founded in 1851 as a small grocery store, William Jackson and Son today offers a line of bakery goods through its Jackson's Bakery business; and sells oriental food products under the Kwoks Foods brand. Other businesses include Tryton Foods, which sells Aunt Bessies Yorkshire Pudding batters, potatoes, and sausage balls. In mid-2004 the UK's #3 grocery chain, J Sainsbury, acquired the company's 114-store Jacksons Stores chain of convenience stores. William Jackson and Son is a family-owned business, which is headed by chairman Christoper Oughtred, the founder's great grandson.

Fredericksburg Lockers is a leading regional meat processor and supplier in central Texas. Doing business as Opa's Smoked Meats ("Opa" is German for grandfather), the company sells traditional German sausages such as bratwursts and knackwursts. It also sells hams, jerky, smoked poultry, and a variety of other sausages. Opa's sells its meat products through grocery stores and supermarkets (Albertson's, HEB), as well as direct to consumers through its retail store and Web site; it also supplies concessions operators. The company was founded in 1947.

United States Bakery was founded in 1906 by Engelbert and Joseph Franz and is still owned by the Franz family. United States Bakery also known as Franz Bakery, owns and operates six regional bakeries, as well as a chain of some 50 bakery thrift stores, all located in the Northwestern US. In addition to selling baked goods at its retail outlets, United States Bakery sells a variety of breads, pastries, bagels, donuts, and cookies to grocery stores, restaurants, and foodservice operators.

Nissin Food Products, the company that introduced instant ramen noodles to the world in 1958. The Japanese company's philosophy is simple: "People Can Only Be Content When There Is Enough Food." Nissin Food's product line has expanded beyond its iconic Cup Noodles to include puffy pillow-type packages of instant noodles, along with fresh and frozen convenience noodle products, breakfast cereals, snacks, confectioneries, and yogurt drinks. Nissin Food Products company has operations in Asia, North America, and Europe.

Pacific Tomato Growers sells produce ripened under the benevolent West Coast sun. The company is part of the SUNRIPE group of companies, which, in addition to Pacific Tomato, includes Triple E Produce, SUNRIPE Pre-Pak, Pacific Collier Fresh, and Heller Bros. Packing Corp. Pacific Tomato Growers grows, packs, and ships tomatoes, including mature green, Bella Roma, sweet grape, and vine-ripened varieties to repackers as well as to retail and foodservice customers; its SUNRIPE affiliates produce bell peppers, yellow squash, zucchini, cucumbers, oranges, tangerines, and grapefruit. Field-grown and greenhouse and standard and organic varieties are available.

DUDA has been around the block -- er, the vegetable chopping block. In business for some 80 years, A. Duda & Sons (DUDA) grows and markets fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as value-added produce products. The company sells its produce to retail and foodservice customers through it shipping and import/export operations. Its main offerings include celery (DUDA is one of the world's largest celery producers), radishes, lettuce, onions, and sweet corn, as well as citrus fruits, all sold under the DANDY label. DUDA also grows and processes sugarcane and sod and has cattle operations. Its Viera division develops and manages commercial and residential properties in Florida.

UK oenophiles and online-ophiles alike can shop their thirst away at Virgin Wines. The company operates a wine market website sorted primarily by wine style, or taste, rather than region, making its product more accessible to the everyday wine drinker. While conducting the majority of its delivery business online, a staff of wine advisors also provides phone consultation and wine tips to customers. The company is a subsidiary of Direct Wines. It was founded in 2000 by Rowan Gormley.

The Flying Dog Legend begins in 1983, and like every good legend there are several versions of this tale. The villains of the peace in this story are two non-conformist, 'not likely to take it lying down' ranchers named George Stranahan and Richard McIntyre.As George tells it, he and 11 of his closest friends and family decided to embark on what they called an “amateur mountaineering expedition” to climb K2 in the Himalayas. Under-qualified and unprepared, they started their journey with a Sherpa, a donkey, and a suitcase full of contraband. Naturally, half way through the trip the contraband was gone and the Sherpa and donkey had run off, leaving George and his group to fend for themselves. Luckily, everyone managed to make it off the mountain alive, and with a new outlook on life.

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