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Published January 24, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. | Updated December 15, 2019 at 4:06 p.m.
Red Hen Baking has gotten into the grinding business. Last week, the Middlesex company purchased a small stone mill, made by a father-and-son team in North Carolina, with which it now grinds some of the rye flour for loaves such as Mad River Grain, Pumpernickel and Crossett Hill.
The purchase was inspired by an oversupply of whole rye berries from Todd Hardie, founder of Honey Gardens Apiaries and Caledonia Spirits. Having sold the booze biz in 2015, Hardie now grows rye, barley and elderberries at Thornhill Farm in Greensboro Bend; he also raises pigs and keeps bees.
Why hasn't the bakery milled in the past? "The way we supported farmers up until now was by buying their flour," said Red Hen co-owner Randy George. Many farmers add value to their grain by milling it themselves, such as Ben Gleason of Gleason Grains in Bridport, and a Québec farm from which Red Hen purchases a great deal of wheat flour.
However, having the option to mill, George explained, will allow Red Hen to build a pool of knowledge about the potential of growing grains besides wheat in Vermont. "We're at the beginning of a learning process," he said. "Rye isn't valued as a food crop in America; therefore, we don't know a lot about it."
The original print version of this article was headlined "Grist for the Mill"
Related Locations
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Barr Hill
- 116 Gin Lane, Montpelier Barre/Montpelier VT 05602
-
802-472-8000
- caledoniaspirits.com
-
Honey Garden Apiaries
- 2777 Route 7, Ferrisburgh Middlebury Area VT 05456
-
802-368-2930
- www.honeygardens.com
- Be the first to review this location!
-
Red Hen Baking Co.
- 961 Route 2, Suite B, Middlesex Barre/Montpelier VT 05602
-
802-223-5200
- www.redhenbaking.com
-
Thornhill Farm
- 198 Taylor Rd., Greensboro Bend Northeast Kingdom VT 05842
- Be the first to review this location!
More By This Author
About The Author
Suzanne Podhaizer
Bio:
Former contributor Suzanne Podhaizer is an award-winning food writer (and the first Seven Days food editor) as well as a chef, farmer, and food-systems consultant. She has given talks at the Stone Barns Center for Agriculture's "Poultry School" and its flagship "Young Farmers' Conference." She can slaughter a goose, butcher a pig, make ramen from scratch, and cook a scallop perfectly.
Former contributor Suzanne Podhaizer is an award-winning food writer (and the first Seven Days food editor) as well as a chef, farmer, and food-systems consultant. She has given talks at the Stone Barns Center for Agriculture's "Poultry School" and its flagship "Young Farmers' Conference." She can slaughter a goose, butcher a pig, make ramen from scratch, and cook a scallop perfectly.
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