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2013 Posts
Sustainability. Certification. First and Second party claims.
By Karl Kupers on May 02, 2013
Shepherd’s Grain Southern California Partnership
By Karl Kupers on April 12, 2013
Shepherd’s Grain is set to provide sustalnable, traceable, California-grown wheat to Gold Star Foods.
Testing New Varieties
By Karl Kupers on April 08, 2013
We held our annual bake test last month to test new varieties of grain.
Is the gluten of today the same as your great-great grandmother’s gluten?
By Karl Kupers on February 27, 2013
Is the gluten of today the same as your great-great grandmother’s gluten? The simple answer is yes but know where your gluten comes from.
2012 Posts
The Shepherd's Grain Story
By Sterling Allen, AgriTimes Northwest on August 10, 2012
*The “story” is Shepherd’s Grain Wheat and about the family farmers who grow it. *
April 2012 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on April 20, 2012
As many of you know I have always called this my "almost" monthly newsletter and that occured this past month. I know from a sportsmans view why thay call it March "Madness," but I believe it had that same connotation for Shepherd's Grain.
Moving Forward for Healthy Kids
By Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan on February 16, 2012
Last week was an exciting week for America’s school lunchrooms. Our new meal standards were announced and they will help improve the health of millions of children. These new standards represent one of five major components of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010.
February 2012 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on February 06, 2012
Ten years ago when Fred and I would travel to Portland to meet potential customers, Fred would always end the meeting with stating that they would become “food activists” if they purchased Shepherd’s Grain flour.
January 2012 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on January 25, 2012
A brand New Year is once again being written on all documents (and checks) and hopefully only a few times as 2011. Once you put the month ahead of the year you are quickly reminded to write it correctly.
2011 Posts
November 2011 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on November 11, 2011
I am going to tackle an issue that has needed attention for some time. I have not been ducking the need, just haven’t had the right mindset to delve into it.
October 2011 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on October 24, 2011
I know I have discussed the following before but sometimes thoughts bear repeating. I did not spend time going through the archive to see when I discussed the thought of how “team” has had such an influence on Shepherd’s Grain but it certainly seems appropriate to be repetitive.
Transparency, Trust & Truthfulness
By Karl Kupers on October 06, 2011
Transparency, trust, truthfulness are three cornerstones of Shepherd’s Grain. I was introduced to a new term that may encompass them all and it is authenticity. The word came in conjunction with an invite to a conference titled: “Authenticity—Building trust through Sustainable Business.
August 2011 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on August 30, 2011
The difficulty in taking a month off from writing a newsletter is you either (a) forgot how to, or (b) have too many ideas to choose just one. I will let you decide which dilemma I am suffering from.
July 2011 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on July 26, 2011
This is a short statement to notify you of a temporary change in our Food Alliance status.
June 2011 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on July 07, 2011
As we approach the Day of Independence for the United States I am reminded of the independence Shepherd’s Grain has in pricing our farmer’s wheat crop. For many outside of agriculture the idea of not being able to match up your cost of production to your marketable price is very foreign.
May 2011 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on May 27, 2011
For all those residing within the Pacific Northwest, you are familiar with the weather pattern that has kept the area in a near winter wonderland through April with some significant snowfall in the northern Spokane region just last week.
April 2011 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on April 27, 2011
Within the last month our Federal government was describing a potential shutdown and stating that “non-essential” employees would be the first affected. That of course brought forward the thought; if they are non-essential then why are they employed in the first place.
March 2011 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on March 16, 2011
As farmers we fall in love with (or not) and respect Mother Nature especially when you are a dryland producer. One thing that you quickly learn is it can have some powerful forces and we just witnessed one in Japan.
Globalization
By Karl Kupers on February 24, 2011
Globalization has affected most if not all of our lives. The products we buy are made in far away places, the information we are able to know instantly has no borders, and the food we eat can come from anywhere on the planet.
2010 Posts
The Art of Milling (As Much as I Know)
By Karl Kupers on December 18, 2010
First and foremost let it be known that I am not a miller but I have become fascinated about the process. I wanted to write about the great work Shepherd’s Grain gets done at the ADM mill in Spokane.
A Short Quote from an MIT Blog
By Karl Kupers on November 29, 2010
Let’s support ‘farms that aren’t worlds into themselves, farms that restore instead of deplete, farms that farm extensively, instead of intensively, farmers that are not just producers but are experts in relationship’ –Dan Barber, TEDX Cambridge, May 17, 2010
November 2010 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on November 10, 2010
This posting is about looking inside the development of a company that started 11 years ago with a dream and a commitment to create a brand in the food industry known for changing the way things were done. You know that company as Shepherd’s Grain.
October 2010 Newsletter
By Karl Kupers on October 03, 2010
I was all set to do a long article on the symmetry between the autumnal equinox and the Shepherd’s Grain pricing model. That was before I googled the story and science about the autumnal and vernal equinox’s.
Harvest 2010
By Lee Druffel on September 30, 2010
This year’s harvest was mostly good. The excess June rains ( a record for our farms) helped our normally short of moisture areas yield well above average but the normally good precipitation areas were too wet and had disease problems that limited yields on our farm.