Founding Story
The Stone-Buhr Milling Company first opened its doors in 1908, in Seattle's Fremont District. Theodore Roosevelt was President, the Chicago Cubs had won the World Series and Henry Ford introduced the first Model T.
It was a simpler time, when community was prized and local economies sustained themselves through an honest system of barter and trade for real products and services. Local farmers brought their harvest to Stone-Buhr for milling before selling it to local bakeries and shopkeepers, and for 73 years, it was independently owned. A series of sales and acquisitions eventually led to ownership by an international conglomerate and outsourcing of the milling to larger facilities.
Stone-Buhr Today
Fast forward to 2002. After witnessing the burst of the dot-com bubble, I wanted to return to a simpler life, or at least a better way of doing business. Recognizing Stone-Buhr's solid reputation as a leading provider of artisan baking products to the consumer market, I purchased the company with a plan to innovate by returning to business basics. That same year, Stone-Buhr forged a unique partnership with Shepherd's Grain, a progressive regional group of wheat farmer-owners, to produce Stone-Buhr's sustainable products. The coop is comprised of 33 multi-generational family farmers producing quality wheat on 65,000 acres in an area of Washington, Oregon and Idaho collectively known as the Columbia Plateau. Dedicated to responsible, sustainable farming practices, Shepherd's Grain growers are certified by the Food Alliance, the nation's leading third party certifier of agricultural producers and processors. Stone-Buhr recognizes that farmers, as food producers, are the most important stewards of the land. I invite you to join us in supporting the health and well being of rural communities and our environment, one loaf, muffin or cookie at a time.
Josh Dorf
CEO