“Bread is an expression of the farmers that grew it and the soil they live on and the miller that milled it. Essentially, we’re trying to give the land a voice.”
Anomarel Ogen, GAIL’s Master Baker
As many of the best stories do, this one began with a conversation.
A conversation with our millers about how we could best help farmers to do what they do, better. Of how soil health, nutrition, flavour and quality could be prioritised over yield and production and still put exceptional bread on the table. Of how to return to a system where the land rules all.
That conversation turned into many more conversations which eventually became our Wheat Project in 2023.
A partnership created between baker, miller and farmer to create positive change in the growing, processing and baking of grain, we’ve been chronicling the Wheat Project since it began, over two years ago.
During that time, we’ve shone a light on how the project attempts to reverse the modern breadmaking process.
Over the last 100 years or so, the baker dictated to the farmer what the soil should produce for highest yield and most consistent quality and the miller then milled it.
After much discussion and debate, the solution was a simple one. We asked our farmers to grow whatever grains their soil needed with the assurance that we would use whatever yield was produced.
Ten farmers planted and harvested heritage grains specifically for this project, including Miller’s Choice, Torth y Tir, Solina, and winter and spring population wheat. These farmers practice soil-positive and regenerative farming, focusing on giving back to the earth rather than depleting it. Our millers then unlock the potential of these grains, using skills and methods that are hundreds of years old.
Heritage grains have lower yields but require no chemicals. As well as enriching the soil, these grains are also rich in flavour and nutritional benefits. Unlike mainstream grains, heritage grains are also highly weather dependent - meaning that each crop will differ.
As bakers, this is challenging as we never quite know what we’re going to get. Yet, adaptability is at the core of craft baking and we eagerly awaited the arrival of each sack of flour.
We’re therefore delighted that, as of this week, our first baked goods from The Wheat Project will be gracing the shelves of our bakeries.
Our Good Earth Sourdough is made with wholemeal wheat, barley, emmer, spelt, and rye for deeper flavour and nutritional diversity. The fully wholemeal loaf also contains British-grown cold-pressed rapeseed oil for added flavour and softness. Round and flattish in appearance, we’ve chosen not to score this loaf, allowing it to open naturally in the oven, giving it a somewhat moonlike crust.
Crisp and crunchy, the dough for our Heritage Wheat Crispbreads features UK-grown heritage wholemeal wheat flour, complemented by small amounts of emmer, spelt, and rye. Our unique fermentation process uses a combination of sourdough and yeast to enhance both taste and nutritional diversity. We add a touch of malt syrup to balance the tanginess of the starter and British-grown cold-pressed rapeseed oil for its distinct grassy notes.
Our Heritage Wheat & Vanilla Shortbread are made with 100% wholegrain flour from our Wheat Project. If you want to know what a flour really tastes like, then make some shortbread. This simple biscuit will showcase the different scents, flavours and textures of the flour you're baking with. In this case, the addition of wholegrain flour lends a deep nuttiness to our already buttery shortbread recipe.
Years in the making, each loaf, crispbread and biscuit sings of the soil in which the grains were grown. Proof that broken systems can be fixed with enough time and willing and that taking the risk and going against the grain, for the grain, is a difference that can be tasted in every bite…
You can read the rest of our Wheat Project diaries here.
