A John Deere Publication

Aerial view of the Stafford County Flour Mill which consists of tall white buildings and steel silos

Since 1905, the Stafford County Flour Mill has been a mainstay in central Kansas. The mill processes nearly 1.5 million bushels of Kansas wheat into high-quality flour, and employs 40 people to be one of Stafford County's largest employers.

Agriculture, Farm Operation March 01, 2025

From Field to Focaccia

Yesterday's wheat field is tomorrow's fresh-baked bread.

by Bill Spiegel

An ear-to-ear smile crosses Leon Dunn's face as he steers the white Peterbilt toward Hudson, Kansas. The 2024 wheat harvest has been disappointing so far, but this field of irrigated hard red winter wheat looks promising.

This is Dunn's 65th wheat harvest, and he takes winter wheat seriously. All his wheat is hauled to Stafford County Flour Mill, home of Hudson Cream® flour. And Dunn does his part to ensure that bakers nationwide get the best wheat flour money can buy.

Near St. John, Kansas—just a few miles from the mill—Leon and his wife Jan farm with their kids: Brian and wife Carolyn, and their sons Preston, Ian, and Garrett; and their daughter Jennifer and her husband Scott Pfortmiller. Raising high-quality wheat is part of the family legacy.

The Dunns come from a long lineage of wheat producers. Brian Dunn's great-grandfather, A.R. Schlickau, was named by the wheat industry as the 1926 "Kansas Wheat King." As such, he toured the state on the Santa Fe "Wheat Train," whistle-stopping in select communities to tell other farmers about the practices that earned him that title.

Leon and Brian are each multiple winners of the Kansas State Fair's Market Wheat Show, which recognizes the state's highest quality wheat based on test weight, protein, and kernel size.

"It has special meaning to grow the wheat, but also to know that our locally grown flour company will mill it and ship it all over the United States," Brian says.

The Dunns plant the wheat variety Overley, noted for its high mill and bake quality. They plant nearly 2 million seeds per acre to ensure that each seed produces a head.

Leon and Brian use grid soil samples and variable rate fertilizer on wheat; they also have started taking tissue samples after the crop is in its boot stage, to see if there is a late-season rescue treatment to help finish the crop.

"We try to get that wheat kernel as big as we can, because that means high weight, and that's bushels. And it's also quality for the flour mill," Leon says.

Brian and Carolyn's middle son Ian, a freshman in college, also shows a keen interest in wheat. His 4-H Wheat Plot earned him a Kansas 4-H Plant Science Award, and a trip to the National 4-H Congress in Atlanta in 2023.

Like his grandfather and great grandfather before him, Ian understands the significance that wheat plays on his family farm.

"In the fall of 2023, my dad was planting wheat, and my grandpa and I were both working ground in the same field ahead of him," he says. "That was pretty cool."

Above. Packages of flour race through the Stafford County Flour Mills. The 2024 winter wheat crop featured high protein and test weight. From right, St. John, Kansas, farmers Leon, Brian, and Ian Dunn proudly grow wheat for the Stafford County Flour Mills, the source of some of the highest quality flour in the industry.

Wheat to flour. In 1874, German Mennonite farmers brought Turkey Red winter wheat to Kansas and within a decade, Kansas became the nation's leader in wheat production, exports, and milling.

Nearly every county had at least one flour mill by the turn of the century; in the town of Hudson, Gustav Krug organized the Hudson Milling Company with his brother-in-law and began milling in 1905. In 1909, the business took on investors and became Stafford County Flour Mills.

From the beginning, Stafford County has focused on producing the highest quality flour in the country. The company logo features a brown Jersey cow, noted in the dairy industry for high-quality cream. The cow, says Reuel Foote, symbolizes the creamy texture of the flour. "That goes back to our flour being creamy and silky compared to other flours," says Foote, the mill's chief executive officer.

"Hudson Cream flour is a short patent flour, which means we remove all the low-grade flour. It is more refined, and ran through sifters more than other flour brands," he explains.

The Stafford County Flour Mills includes grain elevators in Hudson, Macksville, and Sylvia. Procuring high-quality wheat is critical; each load of wheat is tested for protein, which needs to be between 11% and 13%, aiming for a 12% average. Although farmers can influence wheat protein with fertility and other agronomic practices, that characteristic is largely a function of weather and growing conditions.

The 2024 harvest featured high test weight (60 pounds per bushel is the standard for wheat) and high protein. "We probably averaged close to 13% protein in 2024, but it varies year to year," he adds.

In the company's state-of-the-art mill, wheat is cleaned and tempered with water before the milling process begins. The grain goes through eight processes, including "breaking" the kernel and sifting, before it meets Hudson Cream Flour standards. There are only five employees in the mill itself; two years ago, the ownership group elected to automate the milling process as much as possible and double its size. Now, it mills about 9,000 bushels per day, five days a week. A long-term goal is to run the mill 24 hours per day, seven days a week.

Under the Hudson Cream brand, it sells bleached cream flour, unbleached cream flour, self-rising flour, white whole wheat flour, and bread flour in two-, five-, 25- and 50-pound bags, all the way up to bulk semi-loads. Organic flour was introduced six years ago; demand has increased 15-fold since.

With 40 employees total, including elevators and support, the mill is one of the largest private employers in Stafford County. Foote credits those workers with the mill's success. He adds that Stafford County Flour Mills has a reputation to uphold.

"Our stockholders are willing to let the company grow and modernize and not just worry about profit," he adds. "I credit them and my predecessors, how they built the foundation. Our mill right now is as modern as any in the country. For that to be sitting in Hudson, Kansas, is quite a statement."

Above. Precision is essential when making sourdough bread at Pittsburg Bread Company, where baker Roger Horton cuts, shapes, and bakes hundreds of loaves each week. Kansas-made products like Hudson Cream flour "is our vibe," Roger Horton says. Pittsburg Bread and its sister company TOAST source local ingredients when possible. Heather Horton serves sourdough bread in every recipe at TOAST restaurant in Pittsburg, Kansas. A house favorite: sourdough toast is topped with ricotta cheese and homemade preserves.

Pittsburg Bread. While the Stafford County Flour Mills is hard at work producing high quality flour, it's Heather and Roger Horton's passion that takes the Dunn's wheat from field to table.

In the southeast Kansas community of Pittsburg, the Hortons established the Pittsburg Bread Company in 2021. Each week, Roger prepares hundreds of loaves of artisan bread, from sourdough to sandwich bread, cinnamon rolls to pastries. Many of their bread products are served at TOAST, a restaurant the couple owns just down the street. But they also sell at farmers' markets and other retail outlets.

As it turns out, hard red winter wheat, the kind most grown in Kansas, is perfectly suited for Roger's bread recipes. Hard red winter is one of six classes of U.S. wheat, all with different purposes.

There are less expensive alternatives to Hudson Cream's flour, but that product's high quality and local origin make it a natural choice for Pittsburg Bread Company, Roger explains.

"I want Kansas-made wheat. Our vibe is we want to use Kansas farmers with all our products," he says.

Since the company was founded in 2021, Roger has devoted countless hours to converting standard bread recipes into sourdough-based recipes.

"I believe it's healthier," he explains. "The mission for our bread is to not just be fresh and tasty, but be as good for you as possible."

Bread baking begins Tuesday, when Roger first mixes dough, preparing for Wednesday and Thursday when he shapes and bakes dozens of sourdough loaves, which Heather sells at their restaurant. Thursdays and Fridays he prepares loaves of classic sourdough, focaccia, fricassee, pastries, and cinnamon rolls for the public. "That's where I get to have fun, be creative, and make different styles of bread," he says.

The similarities between farming and baking are eerie. Breakdowns and repairs happen. In 2024, the bakery's air conditioning system failed several times. Consistent temperature and humidity, he says, are vital in baking.

"Today, it's muggy so the dough is extra bubbly and harder to work with," he explains.

Taking those obstacles in stride is part of the business, he says with a shrug. "Things happen."

Good bread takes yeast, flour, water, salt, and time. Great bread requires attention to detail, and that's the cornerstone of their business, Heather says. And she doesn't take for granted the skill and patience that farmers put into the wheat flour Pittsburg Bread uses.

"Your extra effort is worth it, and we understand," she says. "We've also put in that extra work, time, and knowledge. You can taste the difference." ‡