Iowa Co. farm explains why organic, stone-milled grains are superior

RIDGEWAY, Wis. (WMTV) - From growing grain, to cleaning it, to milling it into flour, one farm in Iowa County is committed to turning their grains into products that are accessible for everyone.

Meadowlark Organics is a community mill in Ridgeway that specializes in growing fresh, organic grains. According to mill manager Wes Garner, Meadowlark mills upward of 12 to 13 thousand pounds of flour each week.

“The freshness is probably the biggest difference,” Garner said. “We mill to order. So, everything that you’re seeing on the shelves, or you get in the mail from us has been milled within the last week or two.”

Co-owner Halee Wepking said the stone milling process is simpler than one may think and produces healthier, tastier results.

“We crush the grain basically and turn it into flour, so it’s also a low temperature process,” she said. “So, you really maintain the nutritional integrity of the products and therein lies like a lot of the flavor and all of the unique qualities that all the grain has.”

According to Wepking, they provide products to everyone, from professional chefs to home-bakers.

“Baking is an art and a science, and we really believe that people can experiment, especially home bakers, you know, you get to experiment and see, you know, if you think the turkey red has a more robust flavor, or this spelt is really nice on pizza dough, there’s a lot of unique qualities that these grains have,” Wepking said.

Wepking added their community mill also sources grains from other area farms, stating it’s part of their mission to provide markets for other farms to diversify.

For more information on Meadowlark Organics, visit https://www.meadowlarkmill.com/.

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