Grain by Grain

A Quest to Revive Ancient Wheat, Rural Jobs, and Healthy Food

By: Bob Quinn, Liz Carlisle

Narrated by: Coleen Marlo, Chris Sorensen

When Bob Quinn was a kid, a stranger at a county fair gave him a few kernels of an unusual grain. Little did he know, that grain would change his life. Years later, after finishing a PhD in plant biochemistry and returning to his family's farm in Montana, Bob started experimenting with organic wheat. In the beginning, his concern wasn't health or the environment; he just wanted to make a decent living and some chance encounters led him to organics.

But as demand for organics grew, so too did Bob's experiments. He discovered that through time-tested practices like cover cropping and crop rotation, he could produce successful yields - without pesticides. Regenerative organic farming allowed him to grow fruits and vegetables in cold, dry Montana, providing a source of local produce to families in his hometown. He even started producing his own renewable energy. And he learned that the grain he first tasted at the fair was actually a type of ancient wheat, one that was proven to lower inflammation rather than worsening it, as modern wheat does.

Ultimately, Bob's forays with organics turned into a multimillion dollar heirloom grain company, Kamut International.

©2019 Bob Quinn and Liz Carlisle (P)2019 Tantor

A great primer on the business of organic farming

The author does a great job of showing how his organic farming has benefitted his farm, his finances, his family, and his community. He had many advantages to start with including access to land and equipment. He was able to step out of the typical industrialize agriculture that is termed conventional and succeed in the organic market. While creating that success he helped many others succeed and has started to repopulate his small town in Montana.

This book is a good primer showing how this kind of food based, placed based economic development can work and how to look at your surroundings with new eyes to see possibilities.

Great story, Good research based information

Very well told story. The author's story comes across without being preachy. A scientist at heart, eternally curious, I love the way his company funded double blind crossover rat and human research studies to study the health benefits of KAmut wheat. 🌾

Very enlightening but the narrator voice is awful

Thoroughly enjoyed the topic, having grown up on small family farm that fell prey to what Bob discusses. I eat kamut & love it.

sorry but the narrator's voice & inflection is so distractingly bad, I could only take it in small amounts.

How you can help

I think it was Very good info , you can make farming better for the world and also locally

Thought provoking

This is the best information I’ve found on our food production. It’s really scary how companies like Monsanto have so much control.