ChefShop.com always has what I need! They are one of the highest quality online food purveyors I have seen, and their knowledge of the source of all of their products is astounding. 

- Ali Goodwin

Lentz Family Farms
A Family Farm for Four Generations

Lena Lentz Hardt lives on the farm that her great-grandfather established in 1898, near Marlin in eastern Washington . For generations, the family grew wheat and barley, just about the only things everyone thought grew on such dry land with very little precipitation. (Unlike famously rainy Seattle, the eastern side of Washington state receives far less moisture. Lentz Farms only averages a minuscule eight inches of rain a year.)

 Lena is the last of her family living on the farm, and a few years ago, she was struggling with low wheat prices. One day, her business partner René Featherstone heard her bemoaning the low price of wheat and suggested she grow something else. Lena was skeptical. What else would grow on this dry land, with no irrigation?

But there was an answer: ancient hulled grains - a.k.a., farro and spelt. In the early 1990s, René had researched and published an article on spelt and other ancient grains, hardy crops that thrive in dry climates and yield very healthful (and tasty!) grains. Lena was convinced to try, and in 2000, they grew their first spelt crop. The next year, they added emmer, or farro, which is planted in the spring, while spelt is a fall crop.
Learn More>>