October 2021 Group Watch: Rural AL Companies Make a Splash at Made in AL Showcase
Companies making great products in small corners of the state stepped into the spotlight at the first installment of the Made in Alabama Showcase that featured extraordinary homegrown products. Six of the 12 companies honored by Governor Kay Ivey are based in rural Alabama communities, a fact not so surprising when you consider the variety of in-demand products originating from the state’s rural areas. Beatriced-based Monroe Meat Co. was one of several businesses recognized. The Monroe Brand Sausage company became a household name decades ago when its sausage biscuits were tossed from a company float during the annual Monroeville Hog festival. Today, hickory-smoked Monroe Sausage can be found in most grocery stores. Other companies highlighted were Henry Brick Co., a Selma-based brick manufacturer whose roots go back 65 years; Dean’s Cake House, an Andalusia bakery known for its seven-layer cakes and other treats; SouthFresh Feeds, a Demopolis-based producer of feeds for fish, cattle, deer and horses; SHOWA Group in Fayette County, which after 50 years has become the nation’s largest manufacturer of single-use nitrile gloves, an alternative to latex; and Kith Kitchens based in Haleyville, which started in 1998 as a family-owned business and now employs more than 700 people and is one of the largest cabinet makers in the United States.
