Mill back on track making bedding

ADAMS — The resurrection from the ashes of a June fire is now complete for Berry Bros. Lumber Co.

Owners Lee D. and Gary J. Berry have two grinders running again to create an animal bedding product. Lee Berry said they've spent the last few months recovering from the fire and refining the bedding product.

"Due to our summer efforts, we're back into a productive state," Mr. Berry said. "We're now fully operational."

A fire June 16 destroyed much of the former sawmill. It ruined the tub grinder the Berrys used to grind product, so they could use only the shredder to make animal bedding. Staff had to load shredded material into the shredder a second time to make the finished product.

Now that the tub grinder has been restored, a conveyor belt carries the material that comes out of the shredder right to the tub grinder.

Mr. Berry said the animal bedding they make has been refined to include more recycled material, including cardboard, matting board and paper.

He said the matting board, which comes from Car-Freshner Corp., is especially absorbent. "It's unbelievable, the absorbency in that material," he said.

The Berrys get the material from the Jefferson County Corporate Park off outer Coffeen Street, from the South Jefferson Central School District and from municipal transfer stations in the towns of Rodman, Ellisburg and Henderson.

Ground pulp and slab wood also are part of the finished product. The components make the final product biodegradable. The wood and recycled material are pushed through a shredder with a 1-inch screen and then the tub grinder to make a uniform final product.

Douglas W. Shelmidine, co-owner of Sheland Farms, town of Ellisburg, has switched from a product that included a byproduct of waste paper to the Berrys' new product.

He said the paper product packed tightly when it was wet, but the Berrys' product stays looser.

"It's animal-friendly and easier to work with," he said. "It's biodegradable, so it will work well when we put it back into the soil."

The Berrys will have a booth at the New York State Farm Show in Syracuse from Thursday through Saturday to show off the finished product and increase their customer base. Lee Berry said they'll have samples at the show and are available for orders.

"Our dairy industry is under duress," Mr. Berry said. "It seems that local dairies are using less than before."

The sawmill closed in November 2007 because of tightening timber markets, but then started producing animal bedding because of the demand for sawdust that the Berrys once supplied to farmers and animal owners.

The mill could produce up to four times its current output to fill increased demand. The company could supply 2,000 cubic yards per week of bedding material.

"We're now looking to operate at full capacity," Mr. Berry said.

The mill can provide the material to local and statewide customers, Mr. Berry said. The price is $10 per cubic yard if a customer picks it up, and about $13 per cubic yard for deliveries in Jefferson County and about $15 per cubic yard for other deliveries where backhauling is available.