Producer

Camas Country Mill is something pretty special these days: a genuinely regional mill that processes and packages local grains for the use of Oregon buyers. Camas is located just outside of Eugene and is owned and operated by founders Tom and Sue Hunton and a small team doing truly impressive work. Their flours are special because they focus on specific grains and on naturally whole grains via stone grist mill, all of which leads to more nutrients compared to standard grocery store flours as well as deep flavor.

When Camas Country first opened its doors in 2011, we were the first mill of our kind to operate in the Willamette Valley in nearly eighty years. Grist mills once peppered the landscape of the valley, particularly along waterways, with mills in even the smallest communities. Over time, as the success of the seed industry pushed locally consumed grains to the margins, local mills also faded from the valley, and factory flour came to dominate pantry and grocery shelves across the Pacific Northwest.



The first rumblings of a local mill enterprise started in Tom Hunton’s mind as commodity crop prices were buffeted by the stormy economy during the recession. Having raised grass seed, vegetable and cover crop seed, and wheat for export for decades, Tom decided it was time to diversify the family farm even further, and try something virtually unheard of for a mid-size valley farm—grow grain for the local and regional market. There is tremendous infrastructure set up in Oregon to get wheat and grain out of the state (in 2011, 85% of Oregon wheat was shipped overseas), but very little to keep it within the state.