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Touring the mill
Jul. 19th, 2009 10:09 amOn Saturday, I drove out to Barrhead to attend an Alberta Organic Producers Association meeting. This actually turned out to be a bit of a bust, writing wise, as I didn't really turn up any stories. I did have a good time visiting with many people and learned a few things. I also ate an amazing homemade dinner bun that practically made me cry.
Later than afternoon, I toured an oat mill. Can-Oat milling has three operations in Western Canada and mills about 30,000 to 40,000 tonnes in Barrhead each year. For people safety, and food safety reasons, I was unable to bring my camera or any other electronic devices inside the mill. I was also not allowed to take my pen or notebook in. It was at this point that I gave up the idea of writing a story, and just succumbed to the idea of being on a tour. They divided us into groups of five for the tour. We had to wear lab coats, closed shoes, hairnets, safety goggles, ear plugs and hard hats. We climbed to the top of a five story area where we saw all the tools for removing the hulls from oats. The machines were loud and noisy, and the whole place was quite hot. The tools take the hull off the oats, break the pieces open, steam them and then eventually turn them into flakes. Oats and barley are much harder to rip apart than wheat, due to the thick hull. All in all, it was pretty interesting, but pretty much a bust from a writing perspective.
Later than afternoon, I toured an oat mill. Can-Oat milling has three operations in Western Canada and mills about 30,000 to 40,000 tonnes in Barrhead each year. For people safety, and food safety reasons, I was unable to bring my camera or any other electronic devices inside the mill. I was also not allowed to take my pen or notebook in. It was at this point that I gave up the idea of writing a story, and just succumbed to the idea of being on a tour. They divided us into groups of five for the tour. We had to wear lab coats, closed shoes, hairnets, safety goggles, ear plugs and hard hats. We climbed to the top of a five story area where we saw all the tools for removing the hulls from oats. The machines were loud and noisy, and the whole place was quite hot. The tools take the hull off the oats, break the pieces open, steam them and then eventually turn them into flakes. Oats and barley are much harder to rip apart than wheat, due to the thick hull. All in all, it was pretty interesting, but pretty much a bust from a writing perspective.
