NCI Cereal Innovators Webinar Series | Featuring Jeff Zimmerman

Jeff Zimmerman, Co-Owner & Co-Founder of Hayden Flour Mills.

Each month, NCI updates the “Cereal Innovators” series that offers insight into the world of baking and cereal grains. During the webinar, participants were instructed on the topic of “Economics of Value-Added Processing for the Small-Scale Producer.” This week’s presentation featured Jeff Zimmerman, Co-Owner & Co-Founder of Hayden Flour Mills.

Zimmerman began his presentation by introducing some backstory on Hayden Flour Mills. It was originally founded in 1874 in present-day Phoenix, Arizona, but was forced to close in 1998. The name was revived by Zimmerman and his team in 2012, and now serves artisan bread bakers, farm-to-table chefs, and other local individuals that seek the best quality flour possible for their products.

Hayden Flour Mills early photos. Original founder Charles Hayden is in the top right photo.

Zimmerman then transitioned to discussing the first of several “elements” of what made and continues to make Hayden Flour Mills successful – and that other flour mill businesses could consider as well. The first element he discussed is story. The westward expansion period following the United States Civil War was crucial to Hayden Flour Mills founder Charles Hayden, who was a trader prior to his founding of his mill. He faced a unique problem when he first considered founding a mill: with trains at that time only being able to travel about 40-60 miles a day before needing a resupply, this wasn’t easily sustainable for the type of mill operation Hayden was wishing to pursue. To alleviate this, Hayden founded his mill along the Salt River in the present-day Phoenix metropolitan area, using it as a power source (this was possible since it had running water in it at the time).

Continuing this idea of story, Zimmerman shared information about two brands that were revived by the return of Hayden Flour Mills to the industry: Arizona Rose and Arizona Tulip. These brands are now a major portion of the Hayden Flour Mills portfolio, and are a major driver of business for the mill. Zimmerman added that his great-grandfather’s business, Glencoe Brewing Company in Glencoe, Minnesota (and his eventual moving to North Dakota and wheat farming of the land) was also a major influencer in the story of Hayden.

This “network” is the group of chefs that were included as part of community efforts by Hayden Flour Mills.

Zimmerman’s second essential element is community. He stated maintaining a constant connection with area farmers and consumers has always been extremely important, and illustrated how they do this. From recruiting chefs to advise, test, and support the development of the local grain economy to engaging the community in Phoenix to rally around a contemporary revival of the flour milling process used back in the founding days of the mill (one that requires collaboration amongst the population in order to work), this is something they place great emphasis on.

The third essential element is technology. Advancing technology used in the milling process and striving towards remaining on the cutting edge of the industry is important to Hayden. Not only do these advancements that Hayden has taken advantage of resulted in more efficient milling; it also has allowed for more capacity milling to be completed while retaining the excellent quality standard Hayden has. For example, these advancements have allowed Hayden’s capacity to increase from 200lbs of flour per hour when they were founded to over 1,000lbs of flour per hour in the present day.

Niche products grown and produced by Hayden Flour Mills’ farming partners.

The fourth essential element is niche. Zimmerman explained that embracing niche and specialized products (such as Arizona Golden Durum and White Sonora Wheat) was revolutionary in expanding their business potential. They’ve also allowed creative freedom to flourish with chefs and bakers that use their products, which in turn gives them a chance to expand their product offerings for their customers. It also allowed Hayden to diversify their portfolio, which is part of what’s made them sustainable since their revival.

The fifth essential element is knowledge. Zimmerman stated this includes simply sharing the industry knowledge he and his team at Hayden have with the community and even those from outside the community. Doing this through events such as Grain Schools and NCI’s Ancient Grains Conference this past July allows for the exchange of this valuable knowledge to occur and for important conversations regarding the industry to develop.

Various Hayden Flour Mills products in store shelves.

The sixth essential element is products/markets. This refers to understanding how to produce the products people want, and the best ways to do so. A deep understanding of the industry is a must here, as is constant monitoring of trends and shifts in the market and connections with the correct distributors and sellers. Delivering the products that are in strong demand at the right time is the ultimate goal of an operation such as Hayden, and is a major determining factor in their success.

The seventh and final element Zimmerman discussed is actually a question: “Is this a business or a hobby?” He said it’s important to differentiate the two, as they require much different approaches in regards to sustaining them. Aspects such as the sales channels and the desired market are two examples of elements that are different depending on if the venture is more business-focused or if it’s more just for hobby’s sake. Again, this is a very important distinction for individuals to make.

The Northern Crops Institute greatly appreciates Jeff Zimmerman’s professional input and involvement in our webinar series. At NCI, we continue to fulfill our mission to support regional agriculture and value-added processing by conducting educational and technical programs that expand and maintain domestic and international markets for northern grown crops.          

For more information about future webinars offered at NCI, click here.         

To view the webinar, click the recording below.