Media & News

Since the 1970s, Didion Milling has been a pillar in the communities where they serve and operate. While the business has evolved over the years, including the inception of an ethanol plant in 2008, their dedication to their community has remained consistently strong. This dedication was extremely important as the COVID-19 crisis created a hand sanitizer shortage that began impacting healthcare workers, local police and fire departments, nursing homes and other high-priority locations.

In April 2020, Didion Ethanol began producing ethyl alcohol for use in hand sanitizer and has donated over one thousand gallons of product to date. Those who have received donations include essential service providers like healthcare workers and first responders, as well as community centers, school districts, churches, law enforcement facilities, and animal rescue operations. Didion’s desire to be part of the solution is inspiring and speaks volumes to how they strive to embody their mission statement: “Together, we make a difference: Our Team, Our Community, Our Partners.”

“Taking care of the safety and wellbeing of our community is very important to us. As a company, we knew we could work together to make a difference,” said Coral Didion, Corporate Counsel for Didion Milling. “Through innovation and hard work, our team was able to expand our capabilities to manufacture a high-quality product that was in short supply during a period of high demand. Now more than ever, we are relying on each other to arrive at the other end of this COVID-19 pandemic healthy and united.”

The feedback from the community has been resoundingly positive and the demand has continued to grow due to the extra sanitizing practices that have become the new normal for everyone. Because of this, Didion has focused all of their donations on meeting the demand of their workforce and community partners.

Many have shared their gratitude for Didion Milling online and on social media, including the following community organizations:

“Shout out to Didion Milling, Inc. for the donation of hand sanitizer! Didion is manufacturing hand sanitizer to meet the market’s increased demand during the COVID-19 pandemic. We appreciate their generosity and are honored to have them as a part of our community.” – Randolph Community Clinic

“Thank you Didion Milling, Inc. for your donation of Hand Sanitizer to Home Again Assisted Living. We appreciate it!” – Home Again Assisted Living

“Thank you to Didion Milling, Inc. for the generous donation of 24 gallons of hand sanitizer! It’s awesome to have such great community partners!” – Columbia County Sheriff’s Office

“Thank you Didion Milling, Inc. for helping us get ready for in-person programming with our young people starting June 15th! We so appreciate your donation of 40 gallons of hand sanitizer to help us fill the need of our OFS Forward Plan! Bonus, delivery right to our door.” – Operation Fresh Start

 As organizations and companies across the country reopen, the new normal will likely look different for many who have had to pivot to new best practices that fundamentally redefine concepts of ‘business as usual.’ With a proven dedication to evolving and growing to fit the needs of their neighbors and industry demand, we can all take notes from the team at Didion to learn how they’ve positioned themselves to thrive in an ever-changing business environment by assisting those in need as they adjust to do the same.

This post is part of the Renewable Fuels Association’s #RFACommunityPartners series spotlighting individual member companies’ heroic responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.