Category: News & Announcements

• Stop in and see us in our new digs at 19611 Hwy 20 Winthrop. We are open to the public Monday through Friday from 9-4.

• Coming Soon: New Website and Online Store. We will be upgrading to a new website and online shopping experience in October! We are really excited to bring you a better platform and store front. Stay tuned for a new look in October + we will have a stellar site for our Wholesalers to order from.

• SAVE THE DATE: Bluebird Grain Farms is partnering with Friends of Winthrop Library to bring David Montgomery and Anne Bikle’ to the Winthrop Library on October 21st for a lecture and discussion about how to heal our land and reclaim our health. What Your Food Ate takes evidence from recent and forgotten science to illustrate how the health of the soil nourishes crops, livestock, and ultimately us.  Join us as we delve into the book and collectively share insights on the profound connection between soil health and human well-being. More information on the book can be found on the authors’ website: https://www.dig2grow.com/. If you are in our What Your Food Ate book group, we will be meeting this Thursday, September 7th at 4:30 in the Winthrop Library. Bring a dish to share.

Organic Sonora Heritage Wheat Back in Stock

Harvest has started. Sonora heritage soft white wheat berries and flour are back in stock in both retail and wholesale channels. We are now offering Sonora heritage wheat in 2000 lb. totes to our wholesale customers. You can find our Sonora online or give us a call: 509-996-3526

Emmer Flour and Hard Red Wheat Flour lands on PCC shelves!

Look for our 2 lb. Emmer flour and 2 lb. Methow Hard Red Flour- it should be landing on the shelves in the next month. Our organic Whole Grain Emmer, and Hard White and Red Wheats should also be found in your bulk sections. Don’t see the products you would like to? Please let your local grocery store buyers know what Bluebird products you would like to see. Reach out to us also: we keep a list of customer requests.

New Packaging!

We have new packaging for all of our 2, 4, and 5 lb. products. You will see the new packaging in your orders starting in September. This has been a multiple year project that Brooke Lucy has been working on with her design and packaging team. We are delighted to offer a #4 recyclable package. All of our flour, cracked grains and handcrafted blends will transition to 2 and 4 lb. units. Our whole grains will remain in 5 lb. units.

New Podcast!

In episode 6 Deputy Don and Farmer Sam discuss how harvesting, storage, and the processing of ancient wheat profoundly impact the quality and flavor.  Join them as they uncover the nuances behind processing emmer wheat.  Click HERE to listen now.

Join us, October 21st.

Bluebird Grain Farms is partnering with friends of Friends of Winthrop Library to bring David Montgomery and Anne Bikle’ to the Winthrop Library on October 21st for a lecture and discussion about how to heal our land and reclaim our health.

What Your Food Ate takes evidence from recent and forgotten science to illustrate how the health of the soil nourishes crops, livestock, and ultimately us.  Join us as we delve into the book and collectively share insights on the profound connection between soil health and human well-being. More information on the book can be found on the authors’ website.

Vegas or Bust

Our daughter Larkin and her friend Rupert Dyer saved my bacon a few weeks ago; the day before I was to travel to Las Vegas to the Fancy Food Show I tested positive (yes for the first time) for COVID. With a Bluebird Grain Farms booth set up and product waiting in the wings, Larkin and Rupert raced to my rescue. Before I had a chance to consider canceling the show, Larkin responded “I got this Mom,” and off they went to Vegas from Eugene, Oregon.

While in Vegas, Larkin and Rupert connected with many long-time customers and made new connections. Larkin took on the networking role, while Rupert, with pen and paper in hand, was the chief documenter. They sent a notebook back to me, full of leads, business cards, meticulous notes, and funny comments like “looks like Steve Martin” and “Hot lead, needs Einkorn ASAP.”

I am so grateful for my daughter and Rupert, for stepping up to the plate. This was a big ask. They worked three long days and it made me realize how much Larkin has absorbed by growing up in our family business. She has come a long way from her days of selling emmer cookies at the farmer’s market. This situation has helped me reflect on how important it is to engage and include children in what you do. Bluebird has been 30 steps from our front door throughout her entire childhood-Larkin really didn’t have a choice to not be involved. We have never “formally” trained our kids on the business. As they come into adulthood I am reminded (as are they) how much they have absorbed by just “being around,” it truly is a silver lining.

Public Hours at Bluebird

Our granary at 19611 Hwy 20, between Winthrop and Twisp, is open to the public Monday through Friday from 9-3 pm. Stop in and say hello and pick up an order of whole grains and freshly milled products. We love connecting with our customers. If your order is over 100lbs of freshly milled products we kindly ask that you call ahead and place your order in advance- we don’t have a lot of milled products sitting around- we want them delivered fresh to you. If you are not able to make our public hours to pick up your order- you can always place your order via phone or online (select “local pick up in the shipping tab”). We have a drop box outside under our porch, you can pick your order up any time of the day- we will send you an email when it is ready for pick up.

Upcoming Events

• Saturday, May 13th Noon – 3 PM: Open house starts at Noon and 2:00-3 PM Granary Tour(Winthrop 49er weekend). Sign up HERE if you plan to attend.
• June 6th: First Tuesday Lecture Series with the Methow Conservancy

The Next Farm Bill Must Be a Climate Bill: It’s Time to Take Action

Climate change is an urgent challenge. Re-defining agriculture must be part of our bold climate action. The future of food security and resiliency will heavily depend on the next steps that congress takes in re-writing and voting on the Farm Bill. The current Farm Bill was enacted in December 2018 and expires in 2023. Nationally, there is momentum in rewriting our antiquated agricultural policies and moving toward soil health and a climate-focused future. There are a few organizations that are doing some great work in this space. If you truly care about getting good food on the table and encouraging and supporting organic regenerative agriculture, it’s time to take action. Below are three important organizations that I would like to bring to your attention:

Nationally, The National Sustainable Agricultural Association is doing some hard work. NSAC advocates for federal policy reform for the sustainability of food systems, natural resources, and rural communities. They are located in Washington DC and are actively working on making policy changes to the Farm Bill to include:

• Advance racial equity across the food system
  • Improve access to USDA funding and programs for farmers of color
  • Increase funding for programs and policies that support farmers of color
  • Strengthen data collection and analysis to inform racial equity-driven decision-making
• Build a climate-resilient future
  • Advance land stewardship through conservation program funding and access
  • Increase funding for sustainable and organic agriculture research programs
  • Prioritize research that helps farmers adapt to and mitigate climate change
• Invest in healthy rural and urban communities
  • Strengthen resilient local and regional food systems
  • Expand and enhance USDA procurement programs and practices
  • Rebuild local and regional meat processing capacity
  • Ensure access to locally produced, nutritious, culturally-relevant food
• Level the playing field for small and mid-sized farms
  • Support beginning farmers’ access to land and capital
  • Fix the flawed farm safety net and improve access for diversified farmers
  • Address corporate consolidation and restore fair competition 

Take Action: Go to the National Sustainable Agricultural Association website and Sign up online to send a direct message to congress to make these changes to the Farm Bill.

In Washington State, Tilth Alliance has a program called Coalition for Organic and Regenerative Agriculture (CORA). CORA’s Website states:

CORA is a unifying force, bringing together the multiple interests represented within the organic and regenerative community. CORA serves as a strong voice for this community, assertively advocating for policies and programs that are inclusive of all represented interests and that promote equity, inclusion, diversity, and anti-racism. CORA is actively involved in policy making at the Washington state and national level that promote and support adoption of organic and regenerative practices.

Coalition for Organic and Regenerative Agriculture

Take Action: Support Tilth Alliance and become a member of CORA. Individual memberships start at only $10.00 annually. Sign up and let your voice be heard.

In Okanogan County: Methow Valleyx Council has taken the lead in creating a Resilient Methow and the Climate Action Plan. Their website states:

Over the past year and a half the Citizens Council and over 45 other local organizations, agencies, and community leaders have been working to develop a Climate Action Plan for the Methow Valley. This is a community-driven, collaborative effort involving representatives from the agriculture, health and emergency services, infrastructure, natural systems, and economic sectors of the valley. To learn more about The Methow Valley Climate Action Plan, please visit www.resilientmethow.org.

Methow Valley Citizens Council

Take Action: Stay informed and sign up for MVCC’s mailing list. Check out their incredibly informative Pacific Northwest Climate Toolbox to see the breath of research on how climate change has and will affect agriculture, water, and fire. Consider becoming a member of MVCC. Memberships start at $25.00 annually.

Ashley Lodato

About 13,000 years ago the last of the Missoula floods swept across Eastern Washington and down the Columbia River Gorge. Glaciologists estimate that the glaciers in the Methow Valley were up to a mile deep. When the ice receded, the First People arrived and inhabited the Methow Valley. 

For at least 10,000 years the banks of the Methow River have been home to 375 generations of the Methow People, as evidenced by pit houses in at least 18 different sites around the valley, earthen ovens, and tools like arrowheads, mortars & pestles, and tomahawks. 

When the first white settlers arrived in the Methow Valley in the late 1800s, most of the Methow People (sp̓aƛ̓mul̓əxʷəxʷ–“blunt hills around a low valley”) were forcibly relocated to the Moses-Columbia Reservation, formed in 1879. In 1884, the Moses-Columbia Reservation was dissolved and most of the Methow People were moved to the area east of Omak, becoming one of the twelve tribes of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. Others in this diaspora refused to enter the reservations and simply stayed or dispersed. There has been a consistent presence of Methow People in this valley since Time Immemorial.

The traditional territories of the Colville Tribes is vast, covering 39 million acres–the homelands of the Chelan, Chief Joseph Band of Nez Perce, Colville, Entiat, Lakes, Methow, Moses-Columbia, Nespelem, Okanogan, Palus, Sanpoil, and Wenatchi Bands in what is now eastern Washington, and parts of Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia. The Colville Reservation encompasses 1.4 million acres. Learn more about the Methow People and the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation HERE.

Throughout the 1900s, various families of the settler community homesteaded and farmed the piece of property where the new Bluebird Grain Farms facility is located. The parcel is part of a 65-acre conservation easement, initiated by former landowners Nancy Farr and Dale Sekijima in 2002. The conservation easement protects the agricultural and open space condition of the property.

In the recent past, most of the agricultural land was used to grow alfalfa and oats, and before that, potatoes. In 1999, long before he knew he would one day own the land, Farmer Sam grew dryland triticale (a cereal feed grain) and annual rye.

In 2017, Bluebird Grain Farms bought the 32-acre parcel with the intention of expanding the processing facility, which–as you can see–we have done. Now we are ready to welcome the community to visit our new operations headquarters! We hope you’ll join us on Saturday, November 19th, from 9am-3pm for our Grand Opening: tours, samples, and easy access to our freshly-harvested grain products. Learn more about our Grand Opening HERE.

This event is now closed for RSVPs.

We are thrilled to be able to officially open our doors to all of our friends and neighbors who have patiently waited for the green light to visit.

We would love to welcome you to visit any time between 9 am and 3 pm on Saturday, November 19th to say hi, pick up some products, or take a peak at the new site.

If you want the grand tour, show up (and RSVP please!) at 10 AM or 2 PM to secure your spot in the crowd that gets the behind-the-scenes look.

If you’re feeling inspired, we’d be honored if you want to bring some Bluebird small bites / finger food to celebrate! We’ll have drinks, Bluebird snacks, and shopping opportunities available. Bring a friend, and RSVP below if you’re coming to a tour.

This event is now closed for RSVPs.

Good Food Awards Announces the 244 Winners of 2022.

We are honored to have our Cracked Farro Porridge as one of the 244 Good Food Award Winners of 2022. Our Cracked Farro Porridge is finely cracked, from our whole grain Emmer Farro. Just one ingredient, pure and simple.  Always cracked, fresh, to order. Cracked Farro Porridge can be used as a hot cereal or be prepared as a polenta, savory style, or used as a soup enhancer, as shown in our Cauliflower soup recipe. In celebration of our award we are offering 15% off all of our cracked farro porridge items, now through February 6th. For recipes and information about our Cracked Farro Porridge, please click HERE.

“The Good Food Foundation exists to celebrate, connect, empower and leverage the passionate and engaged, yet often overlooked, players in the food system who are driving towards tasty, authentic and responsible food in order to humanize and reform our American food culture.” To Find more information about the Good Food Foundation please click HERE.

For the first time, a live pop up shop stocks the award-winning food and drink from 39 States & D.C. through January San Francisco, CA (January 14, 2022) – The Good Food Foundation is thrilled to introduce the 244 exceptional crafters of food and drink from 39 states and Washington, D.C. who rose to the top to become 2022 Good Food Award Winners. With safety in mind, the Awards Ceremony has been postponed to Friday, March 4, and will be preceded by the San Francisco Good Food Mercantile on Thursday, March 3 (tickets here). To mark the announcement of the Winners today, both Alice Waters and René Redzepi, legendary chef of Noma, sent congratulatory videos. Speaking to the sustainability and social responsibility practices of the Winners, Redzepi noted: “I believe it is our collective efforts that can turn the tide and ensure our shared earth will survive. You are the champions of the future, and you are leading the way.” This year’s Good Food Award Winners hail from 39 states and Washington, D.C. Chosen in a blind tasting from thousands of entries before passing a further sustainability and social responsibility vetting process, nearly half of the Winners are first-time awardees. 56% of the Winners are woman-owned businesses and one in six are BIPOC-owned businesses. Across 18 categories, each recognized crafter demonstrated exceptional taste and a deep commitment to building a more sustainable, just food system.

For those eager to taste these extraordinary products, over 100 of the winning food and drink – many not typically available in the Bay Area – are stocking shelves for a limited time only at the two-week Good Food Shop in the Ferry Building (within The Epicurean Trader storefront, January 15-30). THE FULL LIST OF 2022 GOOD FOOD AWARD WINNERS CAN BE FOUND HERE.

After several years of planning and many gentle nudges from our Bluebird community, we are delighted to announce that we have broken ground on our new processing facility. Our new building will be located just off of Highway 20 between Winthrop and Twisp (about 5 miles south of our current location) on our 32 acres of farmland.   The first phase is a 6000 square foot building, that will be grain processing, packaging, shipping and receiving,  and office space.

It is our goal to build a facility that allows us to increase our production capacity so that our farm business can keep up with the demand for ancient and heritage grains.   We are looking forward to creating a better work environment for our dedicated and growing staff.  We want the public to have easier access to picking up product, along with inbound and outbound freight.  We hope to offer education classes, particularly with our local kids and regional farm networks in the near future.  It has always been our vision and dream to be able to showcase our vertically integrated farm business, in one spot, and here it is!

As our commitment to regenerative agriculture grows and expands beyond the Methow Valley we want to engage our community in the planting, growing, harvesting, storing, processing, packaging, and selling of our grain products.  It will be a year, at least, until we are moved in, and perhaps a few more years until we have a formal store and are able to offer classes (phase 2).  In the meantime, we want to share with our community what we are up to. The photos here give you an idea of what our building will look like.  We are also curious: What would you like to see on our site? Please feel free to share your thoughts and dreams for agriculture in the Methow Valley with us. Reach out to co-owner Brooke Lucy , and let her know your thoughts (we’re sure you have some!) as we embark on this new journey together.

Good Food Winners!

We are delighted to announce that three of our grain products won the 2021 Good Food Foundation “Good Food Award” in the Grains category.  This is our second year in a row that our products have won, last year was the Einka & Lentil Blend.  We would like to  acknowledge the Good Food Foundation and its mission which is “to celebrate authentic and responsible food in order to humanize and reform our American food culture.” We love this foundation because it allows us to connect with food buyers and food producers who share the central tenant that good food really does matter!  There is nothing that we feel more passionate about than this topic, as it has been central to our business mission.

The Good Food Foundation does have a pop-up shop through February 7th where you can purchase some of this year’s winning product. If you are interested in the pop-up shop click on the POP-UP SHOP image below. We are offering a 10%  discount on a bundle of three of our winning items now through the end of February via our online store.

Check out these recipes to complement our winning products

Leek & Squash Einkornotto   Farro & Vegetable Winter Casserole 

Old World Cereal with Cinnamon, Vanilla, Walnuts & Dried Fruit

Join Us at the UCCS Grain School! 

Saturday, February 6th, Bluebird owner, Brooke Lucy will be participating in the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs Grain School panel.   For the last 5 years, Grain School has brought a community together ranging from grain growers, millers, maltsters, brewers, chefs, educators, scientists, and students to share and complement knowledge and skills and build business relations in relevant topics. These topics have included whole and heritage grains and their relationship to health, nutrition, dietary fiber, and the microbiome, environment and climate change issues related to agriculture, and topics of biodiversity, grain’s role in sustainable farming practices, and the newest in crop science to leverage the traits of old varieties of grain for nutrition and flavor in more modern strains. On Saturday 6th to learn about adding value to your grain products along with many more topics.

Check out this series at UCCS Grain School.  Click HERE for more information.

Despite the cancellation of Expo West’s Natural Food Show in March, due to COVID-19,  Bluebird was honored to receive an award for three of our products. Nexty Awards, organized by the NEW HOPE NETWORK  announced on March 25th that three of our products won the Nexty Best New Organic Food Award.  Our Whole Grain Emmer, Whole Grain Einkorn, and  Einka and Lentil Blend received accolades and won the product category for the best new Organic Food Product. Chris McGurrin, of New Hope Network, wrote to us in an email:   “I don’t say this lightly and I don’t say this often – Bluebird is a true exemplification of the NEXTY Awards. To see innovation within the supply chain that offers people clean, delicious, nutritious food while revitalizing soil health, revitalizing agricultural communities, educating consumers on organic agriculture, and changing the narrative on how food should be grown is SO. AMAZING. I do hope others follow suit. Talk about integrity-driven, inspiring, and innovative.”

The New Hope Network writes, “The NEXTY Awards recognize excellence in the natural products industry, elevating impactful brands and products that inspire a healthy, sustainable future for people and the planet. At each Natural Products Expo, New Hope Network recognizes products that stand out within the judging criteria of innovation, inspiration, and integrity.”

Although we are sad that we did not get to receive this award in person at Expo West,  we are quite humbled and encouraged. We hope that the energy and excitement generated from this national award will keep our motivation to build our brand, and deliver the highest quality ancient grain products to our customers.

We are grateful to all of our staff including the”team” of high school and college students that stepped up to the plate to work for Bluebird in March and April. As an essential business Bluebird has been faced with some extraordinary challenges during the COVID-19 lockdown. We have had to rework our systems and put extra safety measures in place to operate efficiently and safely.  It has required extra effort on everyone’s part and we are grateful to our core staff and the students that came in after-hours to help with the extra workload.

Here are some fun photos of just some of our student staff members working hard.

We would like to introduce our new Operations Manager, Easton Brannon.  Easton started working for us at the end of January.  We are grateful for Easton’s organizational skills, team spirit, and the ability to identify and solve problems quickly. She is a wonderful addition to our team.

We have a full-time job opening for a millwright.   This job requires physical labor and the ability to keep track of many fast-moving parts.

Shopping in our online store?  You will find that some of our flour and whole-grain products are out of stock intermittently.   Due to the high retail demand, we are only posting what we can process and mill each week.  All products are still offered to our current Wholesale customers.  We have a limited supply of the following items until September Harvest:  Methow Hard Red Wheat and Heritage Rye Berries, which is why these items are not offered in large volumes. Generally, we are reposting items back in stock by Friday of each week.  Gift boxes are temporarily out of stock.  If you are wanting a steady supply of our products your best bet is to subscribe to one of our 4 to 6 month CSA.  All flour items will be available through our CSA subscription.

Our top seller this month Einkorn Flour! I am so delighted to see this flour finally moving. It is an amazing all-purpose whole-grain pastry flour. Check out some of our wonderful Einkorn flour recipes on our recipe page.

We send good health and well being to our customers and supporters near and far.

Brooke and Sam traveled to San Francisco in January to receive an award from the Good Food Foundation for their Einka and Lentil blend. The awards honored 207 winners from 37 states.  Bluebird’s  Einka and French Lentil blend is made with the ancient grain einkorn and rich, peppery lentil legumes, was a standout in a taste test of more than 40 entries in the grain category from across the country.  The winners were announced at the Herbst Theater in the historic San Francisco War Memorial and performing arts center on Jan. 17th.  Speeches were given by Michael Pollan, author, journalist, and professor who has written extensively on the places where nature and culture intersect, and Alice Waters, author, chef, and owner of the famous Chez Panisse, a Berkeley, California, restaurant known for its organic, locally grown ingredients.

Einka and lentils are a match made in heaven for flavor and cook time.  The toothsome texture lends itself to the perfect starch served for breakfast, lunch, but mostly dinner! Check out our latest baked chicken recipe with Einka and lentils, you’ll love it.

We are delighted to introduce our new operations manager Easton Branam. Easton joins us with extensive experience as senior-level facilities planner.  She brings expertise in workflow optimization and systems planning.  Easton is a military veteran and has worked as a communications officer in the army coordinating complex logistics with military teams. Easton has been at Bluebird for a month now and we feel so grateful to have such a highly qualified person join our team.

March 2nd Brooke Lucy will be traveling with two Bluebird employees Tiffany Scott and CJ Anderson to Expo West Natural Food Show in Anaheim this month.  Although Micky Mouse will be close, Brooke and crew don’t expect to be Micky-mousing-around.  Bluebird will have a booth at the expo thanks to a USDA Value-Added Producer Grant that Bluebird received last fall.  Bluebird will be located in the “certified organic” product hall.  This will be a great opportunity for Bluebird to connect with new and existing buyers and educate people about what we grow and process.  If you plan to be at Expo West this year come see us in booth #2187, Hall B.

Team  C got 2nd place in the “family category” at the Ski to Sun Relay and Marathon sponsored by Methow Trails early this February.  Sam, Brooke, and Bluebird’s packaging coordinator Casey Kutz skied the course in just over 2 hours. We meant to call ourselves “Team Bluebird” but auto-fill had a different plan and spit out…… c. Needless to say, we had fun and particularly enjoyed seeing farmer Sam in his lycra onesie.

As of  December 2019, all of our Bluebird Grain Farm products are certified Kosher. The kosher certification was prompted at the request of our Jewish customers. And we are glad to finally get the certification, many thanks to a USDA Value-Added Grant.  If you purchase our prepackaged items you will not see the certification stamp on the bag anytime soon- all of our bags were pre-printed a year ago and it will take us some time to make this transition. Rest assured, all products are certified Kosher as of December 2019.

As of January 2020, we are out of our Washington heritage rye berries and need to keep what we have left for seed stock.  The good news is that we have sourced similar organic fall rye from a farm in Montana which we will be offering in bulk and pre-package until harvest.

We have T-Shirts by popular request! Check out our assortment of Bluebird Grain Farm T-shirts on our online store.

By Brooke Lucy

We almost missed two months of posting our newsletter. Jeeeeeez….  I don’t know if we have ever missed a month in the last eight years.  Alas, life has caught up with us, no excuses, here are some of the reasons why…

I attended two food shows in the last two months, The Crown Pacific Northwest Food Show and the KeHE Holiday Food show.  Attending food shows is a great way for me to meet customers, share our product with others, and hand out samples while making key connections.  The KeHE show was by far the biggest show we have ever done. I traveled to Chicago with my “horse and pony show” and spent 5 days in downtown Chicago at the famous McCormick City Center on Lake Michigan. Attending the show was the easy part  (once the booth was all set up)compared to the prep that it took to attend a show of this caliber.  We ( our awesome staff and I) spent most of April designing a 10×10 booth and getting all of our stuff in order to ship to Chicago.  We could not be attending these shows without a USDA value-added marketing grant that we received last fall. Many thanks to this important USDA program.

Sam has been working 70 + hours per week after an employee got unexpectedly sick in April and had to leave Bluebird. It was extremely unfortunate that this happened the week that planting started.  Sam had to buck up and finish the planting while running the granary 40 hours a week. The good side of this situation is that the business owner gets an up close and personal look at the business’s inefficiencies.  The bad side….we won’t discuss this here. Needless to say, we have a long laundry list of improvements.

Speaking of improvements we are in the process of doing a feasibility study of moving our granary to a more public location on a 32-acre piece of organic farmland that we purchased in 2017 off of Hwy 20 between Winthrop and Twisp. No, this idea did not come out of Sam’s “couple month’s from hell” but rather a long time vision  that we have had of making Bluebird Grain Farms more accessible to the public with the intent of increasing our processing production to meet current demand,  opportunities for agritourism, and to showcase our vertically integrated farm system. We have been pitching our financials to banks and other local investment networks in hopes that we will have funding in place to break ground in the spring.  We look forward to sharing our vision and dreams as more develops, stay tuned.

One fun experience that Farmer Sam fit in last month was a farm tour hosted by Tilth Farm Alliance and WSU Food System Program. Twenty folks showed up to learn about our organic farming systems.  Sam took folks on a tour through our Einkorn and Emmer fields and granary. Many thanks to Tilth Farm Alliance and WSU for networking and organizing folks.  We look forward to more tours in the future.

Last but not least, our daughter Larkin graduated from high school! Gulp. This celebratory occasion caught us in bouts of tears and fits of joy. The Methow Valley is a very special place to raise a child and the last 18 years with Larkin has been full of wonderful people, experiences, and magical places that have shaped her life.  We are so grateful for our community.  This fall she is off to the Clark Honors College at the University of Oregon in Eugene (yay for an awesome liberal town to visit in driving distance with good food)…..another reason to increase production.

Graduation 2019

Larkin in 2003

Here is a shout out to our summer intern Axel Otteson from Seattle Washington, 17 years old. Axel worked with Bluebird for two weeks doing everything from labeling bags, mowing fields to firing up the combine in preparation of harvest. Our neighbors, Jill and Harold Sheely graciously offered to host Axel in their home which allowed him this opportunity. Thank you, Jill and Harold!   It was fun having a young boy around with lots of enthusiasm. Axel was a big help and we look forward to cultivating more opportunities like this in the future.

We were sad to say goodbye to Brad Halm this month, who has been with us for the past four years. Brad came to us initially to work as the millwright. Most recently Brad has been managing sales and marketing along with handling a myriad of other management tasks.  We wish Brad the best as he pursues non-profit management.

Brad’s decision to take a new job has shifted my priorities to come back to Bluebird full time.  Many of you may or may not know that I have been working at our local public school for the past three years as an elementary school counselor. Although I loved my job and felt so honored to be working with young children in such an intense capacity, it became clear to us when Brad stepped down that our business is our first priority and that it was important for me to come back to the helm in managing marketing and sales. There is only so much time in the day.   So, here I am…stumbling through how to get out this newsletter. I am excited to reconnect with customers and look forward to bringing some new energy to the table.

We have also added a new social media coordinator position, daughter Larkin Lucy who is managing and developing content for our social media accounts. It is fun to have the younger generation plug into this important marketing role and nice to have “the kids” interested in the business.

We are quite honored to have received a USDA Value-Added Producer Grant, again thanks to Brad’s hard work. We were awarded a three-year grant to help promote Einkorn sales through product development, marketing, and e-commerce. We are excited about this opportunity and quite frankly a little overwhelmed as we did not anticipate receiving the grant. We will be looking for help in marketing along with e-commerce analytics if you know of anyone send them our way!