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Matt Bloom

Latest Stories (5)

Record heat, drought decimate Louisiana’s beloved crawfish season

Mar 15, 2024
Farmers are catching less than half of their normal haul. Restaurants are hiking prices for the tiny, lobster-like crustacean, which is threatening neighborhood traditions of gathering around a crawfish boil.
Andy DeGrange holds a batch of freshly boiled crawfish. One pound of his recipe sells for $19 this year, which is about twice as expensive as last year.
Matt Bloom

Ski patrollers warm to unions to cope with low pay, high costs in resort areas

Dec 27, 2023
They provide essential services like emergency rescue and avalanche prevention, but they often can't afford to live near where they work.
Ski patroller Jake Miller at Eldora Mountain Resort. He loves the job but struggled with the compensation.
Courtesy Miller

Rural towns fear Kroger-Albertsons merger will close stores and raise prices

May 2, 2023
The companies’ plans have drawn skepticism from trade unions, consumer advocate groups and Colorado's attorney general.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser speaks during a town hall meeting in Cañon City about the planned merger of Kroger and Albertsons. He said he may challenge the deal in court.
Matt Bloom/CPR News

Craft brewers scramble to find aluminum cans

Mar 14, 2022
Manufacturer Ball Corp. reporting unprecedented demand for its cans during the pandemic, raises its minimum order fivefold.
Denver Beer Co. founder Patrick Crawford stands before a mountain of cans inside his production facility in the city's Sunnyside neighborhood on Feb. 8.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

Low unemployment puts strain on census hiring

Mar 11, 2020
The Census Bureau is offering higher wages and pulling workers in from neighboring states.
Christa Bender, a census recruiting assistant, at a hiring fair at the University of Colorado, Boulder.
Matt Bloom/KUNC News