Kevin Lumb is founder of The Power Log (www.thepowerlog.com), a firm headquartered in Brandon, Manitoba, that makes fire logs from flax. Kevin tells the Financial Post what motivated him to become an entrepreneur.

Evolution: “My mother was a school teacher and my father worked for Manitoba Hydro. I’ve always had an independent streak, and early on, I started my own security firm, installing alarms. Later, I started a company that processes, sells, and delivers a wide range of gravel, everything from fine sand to stone.”

Idea: “While visiting a farm, I noticed a pile of flax ‘shives’, the waste fragments of the plant left after harvesting. I began to imagine a use for them.”

Equipment: “Along with Grant Shabaga, our plant manager, and his brother, Vern, I developed the equipment that could bundle and compact the flax shives, continuously extrude them and cut them into stove-length logs.”

New product: “The logs are 100% flax, with no glue, wax, or other additives. They burn generating more heat than hardwoods, without popping or spitting of embers, and producing 66% less creosote, so there is reduced risk of chimney fires.

Wonderful: “I like the challenge of startups that bring new ideas to market.”