Milling Grain At Home

A balanced diet rich in whole grains has been repeatedly linked to a number of health benefits, including a reduced risk of diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Regular consumption of whole grains has also been shown to lower blood pressure and reduce the frequency of digestive upset. Home milling also allows you to add a greater variety of grains to your family's diet, spicing up your regular meals with new flavours.

Nothing compares to flour that’s been freshly milled – it’s aromatic and bursting with wholesome nutrients! With grains and flour it is as with most foods that we eat: The "fresher" and more natural the better for your health and taste buds. This holds true for grains too. Grains can be stored for years in a cool, dry place, without losing almost any of their nutritional value and "freshness". There is nothing compared to an oven- fresh bread using only flours prepared freshly from organic grains. The same holds true for cereals, cakes, pastries…

Natural whole grains contain a wide range of essential nutrients, including proteins, amino acids, and vitamins. The flour retains the complete endosperm, meaning the bran and germ has not been sifted out as with white flour. However, commercially milled products don’t offer you those nutrients. Why? Once milled, the oils found in the bran and germ oxidizes - a process begins that quickly starts to break down many of the nutrients found in whole grains. Therefore, flours and flakes should not be stored for longer periods of time. It is always best to process the grains shortly before they will be used and consumed.

Additionally, compared to store milled, your fresh home ground grains don’t require any preservatives or stabilizers because they are consumed immediately- most importantly, when you mill your own flour, you know exactly what is in it, no hidden or unwanted ingredients. Commercially processed flours can contain up to 21 approved food additives, including bleaching agents such as chlorine dioxide and benzoyl peroxide, maturing agents, anti-caking agents and other unnecessary additives. Commercial white flour is made almost entirely by extracting 72% of the nutritious wheat kernel and sifting out the bran, shorts, middling and wheat germ. Commercial whole wheat flour is simply steel ground white flour with part of the bran added back in. Unless specified, it also contains bleaching agents.