Podcast Notes
Learn more about the people, literature, and language mentioned in the Inland Northwest Artisan Grains™ podcast series by browsing the page or clicking on the section title to be taken directly there.
Language
Artisan Grains: Artisan grains are varieties of cereal crops that are differentiated from conventional grains because of a specific attribute that they possess (i.e. high nutritional value, regenerative cultivation practices, etc). These grains are generally not grown for commodity markets and includes grain subsets such as landraces and ancient grains.
Binder: A binder is a farm implement designed to cut and bind grain crops into bundles. The implement ties the bundles with twine or wire These bundles are then hung to dry so that they can be threshed.
Carbon Neutral: Carbon neutral is achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by offsetting one's carbon emissions with actions that reduce one's carbon emissions, so that the net greenhouse gas emitted into the atmosphere is zero.
Food Alliance: Food Alliance is a nonprofit organization that provides a comprehensive, whole system certification that addresses safe and fair working conditions, humane treatment of animals, and stewardship for farmers, ranchers, and the food and beverage industry.
Grist Mill: A grist mill is a water-powered mill that grinds corn and wheat into flour using two stones: a bed stone and a runner stone. The space between the two stones can be adjusted to mill grains of different sizes and produce flours of different textures. Historically, grist mills were located at the center of town and, at their height, about 350 existed in the United States.
Hammer Mill: Hammer mills work to mill whole grains into flour by pulverizing them by hitting them repeatedly with spinning metal rectangles (or hammers) until they reach the desired texture. The grain berry is entered into a chamber, where it is repeatedly hit by a spinning, metal gear until it reaches a fine enough grind that it can fit through a mesh filter.
Heritage Grains: "Heritage grains are varieties of wheat, rye, barley and oats that were grown before the introduction of intensive, scientific plant breeding in the early 1900s" (Heritage Grains Trust).
Idaho Preferred®: Idaho Preferred® "is a program to identify and promote food and agricultural products grown, raised, or processed in the Gem State. Administered by the Idaho State Department of Agriculture, the program showcases the quality, diversity, and availability of Idaho food and agricultural products and helps Idaho consumers find local products."
Landrace Grains: Landrace grains are "ancient pre-hybridized varieties ("races") of wheat, barley, oats, rye, and other grains that flourished since time immemorial in areas ("lands") throughout the world where they adapted to local environmental conditions" (Palouse Heritage).
No-Till Drill: A no-till drill is a farm implement that creates planting lines by cutting through the soil with a series of disks. It then plants a seed at a programmed depth and covers the seed with soil. No-till drills are beneficial because they allow farmers to plant seed into a field with previous crop residue, ensuring that there is always vegetation in a field and reducing erosion.
Pellet Mill: A pellet mill is a piece of machinery that presses biomass into a pellet form. In the context of grains, it takes leftover grain product and presses it into a pellet form that can be used as fuel or as a milling byproduct that can be fed to livestock.
Phenotypic plasticity: Phenotypic plasticity, usually thought of as an evolutionary adaptation, refers to the ability of one genotype to produce more than one phenotype when exposed to different environments.
Pull-type Swather: A swather is a farm implement that cuts hay or grain crops and lays them into windrows. These windrows allow the crop to dry to the appropriate degree necessary for harvest, processing, and storing. A pull-type swather is one pulled by a tractor, instead of driven independently.
Regenerative agriculture: Regenerative agriculture is a system of farming principles and practices that increase biodiversity, enrich soils, improve watershed, and enhance ecosystem services. The goal of regenerative agriculture is to capture carbon in soil and above ground biomass. Doing so will reverse climate change, increase yields, increase resilience to climate stability, improve health and increase the vitality of farming communities.
Salmon Safe Certified: Salmon-Safe provides high value insight and independent verification for environmental practices protecting water quality and habitat.
Stone Mill: similar to a grist mill, a stone mill grinds whole berries into flour by using two overlaying stones. Unlike a grist mill, a stone mill can be electric or gas powered, not water powered.
The Grain Gathering: the Grain Gathering is an event put on by The Bread Lab and Dr. Steven Jones at Washington State University. This annual conference brings together bakers, growers, millers, chefs, cereal chemists, malters, and others interested in learning about different grain varieties and how to use them in their craft.
Thresher: a thresher is a piece of farm equipment that beats a harvested grain crop in order to remove the seeds from the stalks and the husk of the plant. The separated seed can then be cleaned and processed.
People
Alan Scott, OvenCrafters - Australia
Alan Scott was a blacksmith and baker that designed and built brick ovens. He was passionate about the role ovens have in bringing communities together and has written many books on the topic including The Bread Builders: Hearth Loaves and Masonry Ovens.
Albie Barden, Maine Wood Heat - Skowhegan, ME
Albie Barden and his wife Cheryl have done extensive research on global masonry heaters and oven traditions that could be utilized in New England and started a business building brick ovens. This eventually expanded into wood fire ovens and formed the Maine Wood Heat Company in the early 2000s. Albie is passionate about renewable energy, local food, and home grown family business, with his son, Scott, and daughter, Anna, joining the business in 2010.
Anson Mills - Columbia, South Carolina
Anson Mills is a flour mill in South Carolina that sells homemade mills goods made form organic heirloom grains. They work with farmers to grow and source their heirloom grains and are especially known for their products made with Carolina Gold Rice.
Alice Waters, Chez Panisse - Berkeley, CA
Alice Waters is a chef, author, food activist, and owner of Chez Panisse Restaurant in Berkeley, California where she has been a champion of local sustainable agriculture for over four decades. In 1995 she founded the Edible Schoolyard Project, which advocates for a free regenerative school lunch for all children and a sustainable food curriculum in every public school.
Carolina Ground - Asheville, SC
Carolina Ground is a boutique flour mill in Western North Carolina that produces pastry, bread, rye flour and whole grains. They are passionate about building up their local community of farmer, millers, and bakers.
Chad Robertson, Tartine Bakery - San Francisco, CA
Chad Robertson is founder of the Tartine Bakery, where he is baking loaves of bread “that provide honest nourishment through long fermentation and superlative ingredients.” Their flours are milled in the Skagit Valley by people they trust to take as much care with the milling and growing as they do with the baking all because Chad believes that better grain equals better bread.
Charles Finkel, Pike Brewing Company - Seattle, WA
Charles Finkel is an artist, writer, designer and entrepreneur from Seattle. He and his wife, Rose Ann, founded Pike Brewing Company in 1989. Beer writer Stephen Beaumont calls Charles, “no less than a legend in American beer circles.”
Chris Brookefield, Cairnspring Mills - Burlington, WA
Chris Brookefield is a "venture capitalist, seed investor, and entrepreneur focusing primarily on microcredit in developing countries. Chris is the founder of Elevar Equity and sits on the board of Cairnspring Mills.
Chris Wilkins, Root Baking Co. - Atlanta, GA
Chris Wilkins is a baker in Atlanta Georgia that specializes in locally-sourced, whole grains. Approximately 75% of the breads he produces are made with grains that are grown and milled in the Southeast, and his bread is sold in his bakeshop and in well-respected restaurants throughout the Southeast.
Craig Morris, Washington State University - Pullman, WA
Craig Morris was an adjunct professor and the director and supervisory research chemist at the Western Wheat Quality Lab with Washington State University. Craig's work surrounded novel and ancient wheat varieties and focused on breeding for flavor along with more traditional breeding priorities.
Dave Miller, Miller's Bakehouse - Yankee Hill, CA
Dave Miller is the owner, proprietor, and baker at Miller's Bakehouse in Yankee Hill, California. Dave uses whole grains, which he stone mills and bakes into bread loaves before the "aroma, flavor and nutrients dissipate."
Eduardo Morell, Morell's Bread - Berkeley, CA
Eduardo Morell is a baker that produces traditional sourdough bread out of an Alan Scott wood oven in Berkeley, California. This baking philosophy emphasizes the role of small bakeries in providing your neighborhood and community with high-quality, local food.
Farm and Sparrow - Mars Hill, NC
Farm and Sparrow is an "Appalachian based seed project, grain collection and mill dedicated to expressing the regional terroir of American Landrace grains and legumes." You can buy their products stone-milled to order and with unparalleled aroma and flavor.
Fred Fleming, Shepherd's Grain - Spokane, WA
Fred Fleming is one of the co-founders of Shepherd's Grain, a grower-owned flour company out of Spokane, WA that specializes in no-till, direct seed practices to regenerate the land for future generations. In addition to his work with Shepherd's Grain, Fred is a farms in the Reardan, WA area and is the head of Reardon Seed Co.
Francis Bread - Salt Spring Island, BC
Francis Bread is a bread and pastry focused bakery located on Salt Spring Island, BC. They specialize in naturally leavened bread in a wood fired oven using BC grown organic grains.
Gary Buffum, Buffum Brothers Farm - Lopez Island, WA
Gary Buffum farms for Buffum Brothers Farm on Lopez Island. They grow out seed from Steve Lillestol of Island Grist for milling and eventually baking with at Barn Owl Bakery run by Sage Dilts and Nathan Hodges.
George Skandalos, Maialina Pizzeria Napoletana - Moscow, ID
George Skandalos is an independent restaurant owner, FARE Idaho member, and small business advocate located in Moscow, ID. George is a pioneer of the farm to table restaurant industry in the Inland Northwest and sources many of his ingredients from local farmers, including his 00 flour from Shepherd's Grain.
Harry Peemoeller, Johnson & Wales University - Charlotte, NC
Harry Peemoeller is a Professor of Bakery and Bread Studies at Johnson & Wales University in Charlotte, NC. Prior to joining the faculty of Johnson & Wales University, Mr. Peemoeller worked at various bakery operations in Europe and the United States.
Jill Clapperton, The Global Food and Farm Community - Olympia, WA
Dr. Jill Clapperton is the founder of the Global Food and Farm Online community, a "global social network that provides information and connection to help you understand the science, practice, and outcomes of improving soil health. Jill is also the Principal Scientist and CEO of Rhizoterra Inc., an organization working to demonstrate and promote the link between healthy soils and the production of nutrient-dense food.
Karl Kupers, Shepherd's Grain - Spokane, WA
Karl Kupers is one of the co-founders of Shepherd's Grain, a grower-owned flour company out of Spokane, WA that specializes in no-till, direct seed practices to regenerate the land for future generations. Karl is one of the innovators of no-till farming in eastern Washington, choosing to plant more profitable hard red and white wheats along with seed crops instead of leaving portions of his acreage bare and vulnerable to soil erosion.
Keith Guisto, Central Milling - Logan, UT
Keith Guisto is a third generation baker and fourth generation miller, and the founder of Central Milling. Keith has been involved in the world of baking since the late 1970s. He learned at an early age that a successful baker needs three things: quality ingredients, technical knowledge and a passion for baking.
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Ken Akopiantz, Horse Drawn Farm - Lopez Island, WA
Ken Akopiantz and his partner Kathryn own Horse Drawn Farm in Lopez Island. Horse Drawn Farm uses all power from draft horses to grow and harvest fresh vegetables and other produces, as well as tend to and process livestock. Together with Island Grist and Grayling Farm, Horse Drawn Farm grows, threshes, and mills Lopez grown grains to produce flour for Barn Owl Bakery.
Kevin Morse, Cairnspring Mills - Burlington, WA
Kevin Morse started Cairnspring Mills in Burlington, Washington in 2016 to ensure local farmers remain financially viable, preserve the unique agricultural heritage of the Skagit Valley, to shorten the distance between farmer and customer, and build soil health.
Kevin Murphy, Washington State University - Pullman, WA
Kevin Murphy is an associate professor and head of the Sustainable Seed Systems Lab at Washington State University in Pullman, WA. His work focuses on "increasing the genetic and biodiversity of cropping systems across Washington State through the development of new cultivars and implementation of ecologically-rooted production practices."
Lee DeHaan, The Land Institute - Salinas, KS
Lee DeHaan is an agronomist at the Land Institute in Salinas, Kansas. He is currently working on the development and implementation of Kerna®, a perennial grain crop.
LINC Foods - Spokane Valley, WA
LINC Foods is a worker and farmers owned food hub based in Spokane, WA. They are working towards creating a more sustainable, robust local food system by linking local farmers to new markets and connecting local eaters with high-quality, local products.
Macrina Bakery - Seattle, WA
Macrina Bakery is founded by Leslie Mackie on the model of the traditional old-world village bakery. Their bread and baked goods are made with "as many indigenous products as possible as well as organic grains and natural ingredients," motivating them to source flour from Shepherd's Grain.
Merrill Lewis - Bellingham, WA
Merrill Lewis is a retired English teacher and backyard breeder from Bellingham, WA that is developed Edison hard white spring wheat. Merrill gave his seed to Dr. Steve Jones who grew it out, evaluated it for yield and disease resistance, and eventually released it through the BreadLab in Burlington, WA.
Mel Darbyshire, Grand Central Bakery - Seattle, WA
Mel Darbyshire is the head baker at Grand Central Bakery in Seattle, WA. Grand Central Bakery specializes in handmade bread and pastries with locations expanding into Portland, OR. They focus on "rigorous local sourcing, dedication to traditional techniques, and devotion to the very best flavor" and source flour from Shepherd's Grain.
Peter Reinhart - Sonoma, CA
Peter Reinhart is an American baker, educator and author. He is most known for writing Bread Revolution, American Pie: My Search for the Perfect Pizza, The Joy of Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free Baking and The Bread Baker’s Apprentice. Four of his books have been nominated for James Beard Awards, with three of them winning, including the “Book of the Year” in 2002 for The Bread Baker’s Apprentice.
Renee Erickson - Seattle, WA
Renee Erickson is a chef, restaurateur, artist, and author in Seattle, WA. She is involved in a variety of restaurants in the greater Seattle area and is has authored several cookbooks. Sea Wolf Bakers started by Kit and Jesse Schumann, utilizing the kitchen in one of her restaurants and baking afterhours.
Rob Savino - Seattle, WA
Rob Savino is an artisan baker and past owner of Damsel and Hopper Bakeshop in Seattle, WA. Rob focuses on baking with small-batch, stone-milled flour "made from varietal grains grown in the northwest" and works to adapt classic recipes "to highlight the unique qualities of our flours."
Russ Zenner, Zenner Family Farm - Genesee, ID
Russ Zenner is a retired Shepherd's Grain grower that farms in Genesee, ID. Throughout his farming career, he shifted from commodity market focused to value-added crop marketing to build business. This led to his involvement in Shepherd's Grain.
Sara Hessenflow Harper, Grounded Growth - Richmond, VA
Sara Hessenflow Harper is the founder and CEO of Grounded Growth, a membership-based company out of Richmond, Virginia that "provides the resources needed for food companies and farmers to research, develop and build regenerative supply chains together>' She is passionate about using regenerative agriculture practices to revitalize soil health and mitigate climate change.
Stacie Kearney, Lucky Lady Bread Company - Spokane, WA
Stacie Kearney is a cottage baker running a market bakery out of Spokane, WA. She has been baking bread for over eight years, and is particularly interested in baking traditions of past generations. She is a Culture Keeper and member of the Oregon Trail Sourdough Starter Preservation Society, nourishing a starter with 1847 roots. You can find her bread at various farmers markets in the Spokane area or order on her website for porch pick-up.
Steve Jones, The BreadLab - Burlington, WA
Stephen Jones is a wheat breeder and the Director of the The Bread Lab. Together with his graduate students he breeds wheat and other grains for local uses to be grown on small farms in the coastal West, the upper Northeast and other regions of the country. The Bread Lab is a combination think tank and baking laboratory where scientists, bakers, chefs, farmers, maltsters, brewers, distillers and millers experiment with improved flavor, nutrition and functionality of regional and obscure wheats, barley, other small grains and beans.
Steve Lyon, The BreadLab - Burlington, WA
Stephen Jones is the Director of Small Grains at the BreadLab in Burlington, WA. He specializes in field research and breeding, managing the BreadLab's variety trials and leading the greenhouse and field research portion of the BreadLab's activities.
Teri McKenzie, Inland Northwest Food Network - Coeur d'Alene, ID
Teri McKenzie was a local food advocate and founder of the Inland Northwest Food Network in 2014. The Inland Northwest Food Network worked to empower people through information and hands-on experience, hosting cooking class, workshops on gardening and composting, and regional farm tours.
Tim Cornie, 1000 Springs Mill - Buhl, ID
Tim Cornie is a farmer and the co-owner of 1000 Springs Mill in Buhl, ID. 1000 Springs Mill produces locally owned, third generation organic and non-GMO grain and legume products that benefit their local community. Tim and his business partners are pioneers of the local organic farming movement and are passionate about nourishing healthy soils because healthy soils create healthy food, which in turn means healthy people and a healthy future.
Tom and Sue Hunton, Camas Country Mill - Eugene, OR
Tom and Sue Hunton are the owners and founders of Camas Country Mill in Eugene, OR. They opened in 2011, becoming the first grist mill operating in the Willamette Valley in 80 years. They are passionate about revitalizing local milling and providing grain and legumes to their community.
Tom Keller, The French Laundry - Yountville, CA
Thomas Keller is the chef and proprietor for The French Laundry in Yountville, California. Thomas has earned numerous awards, including from the James Beard Foundation, gourmet magazines, the Mobil Guide (five stars), and the Michelin Guide (three stars). Thomas’ commitment to high quality ingredients extends to his flour and grains, and he has his own blend of multi-purpose flour that is nutrient dense, gluten free, and dairy free.
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Tonnemaker Hill Farm - Royal City, WA
Tonnemaker Hill Farm is a fourth generation farm and orchard that produces fruit, vegetables and hay. Kole and Sonia Tonnemaker began making fundamental changes to their farming process in 1997 and certified their whole farm as organic in 2008, believing organic to be the solution to the survival of the small, family run farm.
Wayne Jensen, The French Laundry - Genesee, ID
Wayne Jensen is a third generation Idaho grain farmer that grows for Shepherd's Grain. Wayne decided to become a farmer-owner of Shepherd's Grain to "experiment with new and sometimes forgotten strains of high-gluten wheat that would not only grow in Idaho and Washington, but also appeal to Northwest bakers."
Wes Jackson, The Land Institute - Salina, KS
Wes Jackson is the founder and president emeritus of The Land Institute. Wes is widely recognized as a leader in the international movement for a more sustainable agriculture.
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Yvon Chouinard, Patagonia Inc. - Ventura, CA
Yvon Chouinard is a surfer, climber, and outdoor enthusiast who founded Patagonia in 1973. Patagonia is known for its environmental activism and emphasis on land preservation. Yvon has spoken publicly in favor of diversifying grain production and conserving soil.
Literature
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Brown, G. (2018). Dirt to Soil: One Family’s Journey Into Regenerative Agriculture. Hartford, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing. https://www.chelseagreen.com/product/dirt-to-soil/
Caballero, M., Amiri, S., Denney, J. T., Monsivais, P., Hystad, P., & Amram, O. (2018). Estimated Residential Exposure to Agricultural Chemicals and Premature Mortality by Parkinson’s Disease in Washington State. International journal of environmental research and public health, 15(12), 2885. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15122885
Kantor, S. (2015). ‘A quiet crisis’: The rise of acidic soil in Washington. Pullman, WA: CAHNRS News,
Crosscut. https://crosscut.com/2015/08/a-quiet-crisis-the-rise-of-acidic-soil-in-washington
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Montgomery, D. (2018). Dirt to Soil: One Family’s Journey into Regenerative Agriculture. Hartford, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing. https://www.chelseagreen.com/product/dirt-to-soil/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwgo_5BRDuARIsADDEntTH8FB2RzGwSLSF1v4zV5CGAK10a4kOFTi_0bwMTa8zkipoNb_uLLIaAjwqEALw_wcB
Pollan, M. (2006). The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. Berkeley, CA: Penguin Group, LLC. https://michaelpollan.com/books/the-omnivores-dilemma/
Scheuerman, R., McGregor, A., Clement, J. (2013). Harvest Heritage: Agricultural Origins and Heritage Crops of the Pacific Northwest. Pullman, WA: Washington State University Press. https://wsupress.wsu.edu/product/harvest-heritage/
Scheuerman, R., Adcock, R., Clement, J., McGregor, A. (2020). Hallowed Harvests: Agricultural Depiction in Literature and Art to Early Modern Times. Camano Island, WA: Coyote Hill Press. https://www.amazon.com/HALLOWED-HARVESTS-Agrarian-Depiction-Literature/dp/0991264185
Sorensen, E. (2019). WSU researchers see health effects across generations from popular weed killer. Pullman, WA: WSU Insider. https://news.wsu.edu/2019/04/23/wsu-researchers-see-health-effects-across-generations-popular-weed-killer/
Xu, C., Kohler, A. T., Lenton, M. A., Svenning, J., Scheffer, M. (2020). Future of the human climate niche. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 117 (21) 11350-11355. https://www.pnas.org/content/117/21/11350/tab-article-info