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two mugs of beer in a field of grain
One of the biggest stories in food the last couple years has been the rise of heritage grains—the different strains of wheat, rye, permaculture kernza, and such that were the foundation of bread, pasta, and so on, before the present industrial age, when GMO strains were developed to tolerate super-soakings of pesticides like glyphosate. Local restauranteur Kim Bartmann has been on the leading edge of providing a space for people to enjoy heritage grains, and I really recommend getting up to speed on this story about her converting all eight of her restaurants to a full heritage-grain program, if you want to understand the depth of her commitment.
Now here's some news. Bartmann has been trying to open a proof-of-concept for her idea that sustainable, regenerative agriculture based on heritage grains can be the basis for a delicious new part of cuisine. She wants to create a brewpub in downtown Minneapolis' Mill District near the Guthrie, at 205 Park Avenue. She's got the plans all sketched out. Guest brewers from local breweries will be invited in to play with heritage grains and brew heritage-grain beers, there will be an attached bakery called Flour Power showcasing heritage grain breads made from flour created by local milling pioneers like Sunrise, and of course a food program featuring local farmers that creates heritage-grain showcasing treats, like heritage grain pizza. So what's the hold-up? She hasn't been able to find enough local investors to bankroll the launch. "It's part of the whole story of being a woman in this business, your network doesn't have the cash that the big boys have. On top of that, it's an untried concept, and no one wants to go first."
Consequently, Bartmann is trying something new. Namely, asking around. Do you know anyone who wants to be an equity partner in a heritage-grain brewpub in the Mill District?
"I don't feel comfortable doing a Kickstarter or something, it's going to be a for-profit business, but businesses need investors. Maybe the right people are out there?" If you're the right person, contact her via this form! The Bartmann group is looking for a $5,000 minimum investment, in the next 30 days.
"It's the same story as when farm-to-table began," Bartmann explained to me on the phone. "There have to be products in the world, food on the table, for people to want it in their homes. If you're going to have more regenerative agriculture in the world we need the products to prove that it will be good to have more regenerative agriculture in the world."
But someone has to go first.
So ask around! And I have a further challenge just for some of you. Here in the Silicon Valley of Food, I know a bunch of you dear readers are reading from within General Mills, Land O'Lakes, Organic Valley, Thousand Hills, and other companies committed to making our food systems sustainable. If you know anyone inside looking for a way forward in regenerative agriculture and heritage grains, forward this to them? It would be really cool to have this in Minneapolis, and meaningful to have it in the Mill District. As far as I know there is no other heritage-grain brewpub in the world, though there is an on-farm brewery and restaurant using the grain they grow in upstate New York and a heritage grain distillery in the U.K. But that's different from giving a big food-leader of a city the chance to play around, lead, and eat in this world of heritage grains.
Start talking it up, food-peeps! This would be an unorthodox way to get a heritage-grain brewpub and bakery, if this is indeed how we get a heritage grain brew-pub and bakery, but no one ever said the food revolution would come in through conventional channels.
