Farm406

farm406 38 Peaks and Prairies caught wind of a new USDA patent for bio-lubricants that would soon be available for federal registry. e patent was for a molecule known as estolide, developed by two Illinois scientists. When used in bio-lubricants, the product maintained well in cold conditions, which intrigued the Peaks and Prairie team. e molecule was cuing edge, and developers were confident it would make a bio-lubricant successful in commercial markets. It was 2006, and the only thing standing between the six founders of Peaks and Prairies and the USDA patent was a mountain of paperwork and a $1.7 million fee. Tenacity and belief in a mission inspires people to extraordinary levels, which is undoubtedly the case in this story. e Peaks and Prairies team knew the estolide patent would take their start- up business to the next level, so they were determined to purchase the patent. "Six of us farmers and ranchers from Montana dug in our pockets and went and borrowed some money from a bank in Montana, and we purchased the patent with a down payment," Wasson said proudly. Peaks and Prairies went from a brainchild to a patent-owning company. ings were surreal on the surface, but the reality was that Peaks and Prairies was a start-up, and money was going out much faster than it was coming in. Major debt accrued, and despite the company's best efforts to create jobs, they struggled to make payroll. Paying the remaining balance on the estolide patent was a whole other monster. Business perked up when they landed some out-of-country investors willing to jump in and offer financial support. ings were headed in the right direction until the 2008 recession hit. e investors walked away, leaving Peaks and Prairies in a tight spot. Looking back, both O'Hara and Wasson admit this was a turbulent time. "Kent (Wasson) and I used to joke we were bankrupt one day and millionaires the next," says O'Hara. e plot thickens: Peaks and Prairies was forced to sell half interest in the company; a decision shrouded in a litany of emotions. Peaks and Prairies was started by Montana agriculturalists, for Montana agriculturalists groups, and the thought of passing the passion on to someone else was unnerving. But the alternative was bankruptcy. Backed in a corner, they sold half interest in Peaks and Prairies to investors in California. Now, flush with cash, they restructured the company and got to work. e needed accreditation for the bio-lubricant was received from the American Petroleum Institute (API) as well as a processing facility to launch commercial production of the product. "Our product was passing all the tests. We were doing great things," Wasson said as he recalled this time in the company's life. In 2006 the founders of Peaks and Prairies LLC learned of a new USDA patent that was becoming available for registry. The six original members opened their checkbooks and pooled their personal money for a down payment on the $1.7 patent. Peaks and Prairies ultimately sold their company and dream to Biosynthetic Technologies. The company is still making Peaks and Prairies' original bio-lubricant to this day.

• Cover