Why Stone Mills Produce Better Flour

Why Stone Mills Produce Better Flour FARM HOME Food Bob Hegge says there is no better mill for grinding wheat and other grains than a natural stone burr mill The grind is finer than steel burr mills and it doesn’t overheat the flour “Stone-ground flour stays cool so it tastes better ” says Hegge Meadows Mills “Mill stones flake the grain instead of chunking it giving it more surface area It mixes better with water and doesn’t have the burned taste you can get with steel burr mills ” Hegge says Meadows Mills is the only one left in the world that makes natural stone burr mills They use pink granite mined in North Carolina reputed to be the hardest granite known to man Hegge says that’s why they last so long “Our company has been making millstones with it for 112 years ” says Hegge “We make new ones but we also restore our old mills We won’t turn away anything restoration wise If the stones are good we will restore them If not we replace them ” Restoration can be as little as dressing and resetting bed stones or can include replacing bearings or other parts The company also sells decorative stones that aren’t up to quality standards They even sell querns working replicas of a primitive hand-powered mill The main business is new mills What originally set the company apart was being the only vertical mill; all others were horizontal “It’s hard to control the grind with horizontal mills ” says Hegge “With ours the slower you feed the grain in the longer it stays between the stones and the finer the grind ” He says the quality of the grind is why all the major firms offering stone-ground flour are using Meadows Mills products Models offered vary by stone size including 8 12 20 and 30-in dia stones Grinding capacity varies from 30 lbs to 750 lbs an hour The company also makes all the support products needed for a milling operation such as sifters collectors elevating fans and baggers including hand baggers “We sell a tremendous number of 8-in mills every year ” says Hegge “Over the years we’ve watched interest rise and fall but it has been on the rise for about 10 years and building every year ” The base price for an 8-in mill is $1 520 with a crating charge of $50 Add the wooden base 6-quart collection drawer belt drive belt guard switch steel table and 1 hp electric motor and the price climbs to $2 285 With a 2 hp motor it’s $2 435 The $50 crating charge applies to both Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Meadows Mills Inc 1352 West D Street P O Box 1288 North Wilkesboro N C 28659 ph 336 838-2282; toll free 800 626-2282; sales@meadowsmills com; www meadowsmills com

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