Ancient Grains
Tim Hammerich
News Reporter
Seventh generation Michigan family farmer Claire Smith is diversifying her operation from their normal rotation of corn, beans and wheat to also include ancient grains like teff and buckwheat.
Smith… “Why we are shifting to these food grade grains is not only is the ancient grain market increasing, it’s slated to hit $6.3 billion by 2026. But what is really interesting is that it’s more of a steady income. And it may not be the biggest part of our revenue stream, but it’s going to be more steady. So the facility that we’re building, the grains that we’re growing, this really provides reliable, consistent income for us that isn’t as subject to crazy outside forces. So we’re more able to control it because these are grains and seeds that aren’t widespread all over the market, it’s more of a smaller niche market. So we’re able to control the prices. Especially when we own the cleaning and processing behind the scenes. So we represent the farmers and the processors so we just have a lot more of the supply chain, which more control means better margins.”
Smith has also created her own teff based granola products, called Teffola.
