Press

Originally published in the Huffington post -

The Perfect Storm of Revolutionary Global Food Production is at Hand

GREAT NEWS FOR ANYONE WHO HAS WHEAT RELATED HEALTH ISSUES,

AND THOSE WHO DON’T YET KNOW IT!

Thanks to Paris Winston and Dr. Iain Cleator, conquering the ubiquitous deadly epidemics of diabetes and heart disease is in sight. Partnering together to form Churchill Global International, they are changing the world of grains, convections and cereals on a grand scale. While Dr. Cleator is a doctor of Gastroenterology, Winston has been called “The Doctor of High Finance.”

Paris Winston, a giant of a man, is a throwback to a different breed of pre-internet entrepreneurs. His newest passion of organically growing and whole-grain milling heirloom Red Fife Wheat on an industrial scale is a phenomenal venture.  His expansive vision for affordable world-wide distribution of this wholesome non-toxic, pure organic, non-GMO grain has the potential to at once reverse the downward spiral of failing health and address the world’s need for abundant and nutritious food.

Mr. Winston’s partner, Dr. Iain Cleator, is a renowned gastrointestinal surgeon, now retired. Merging his lifelong research and devotion to health and human welfare with his passion for the land, this former president of the Canadian Association of Gastroenterology, and now, Professor Emeritus at the University of British Columbia, founded Cleator’s Organic Farms, a fully certified organic farm, free of all synthetic chemicals, antibiotics, fertilizers or hormones.

In addition to growing and processing Red Fife Wheat on a large scale, the farm also grows and produces oats, hemp, green peas and camelina. In coming together to form Churchill Global International, the two gentlemen recognized that feeding the world is the primary challenge of our time. Combining decades of expertise, a shared passion for quality, and an inspired vision for a vertically integrated agricultural enterprise, Churchill Global aims to transform “Industrial Agriculture” into “Industrial Organic Agriculture”.

A vast number of people these days are trying to cut wheat from their diets, forfeiting many things they love to eat because of health problems such as high blood sugar, high blood pressure, gluten intolerance and Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Red Fife Wheat is the answer to all of these issues and more. It has been found, through Dr. Cleator’s research, that it does not contribute to or promote celiac, gastro-intestinal diseases, acid reflux and other life threatening bodily conditions as the current modified wheat.

I find that self-deprivation of food pleasure leads to cravings, unhappiness and ultimately, binge eating. Having a healthy alternative that provides both pleasure and health, promotes a happy, balanced and nurtured life. Unfortunately for consumers, there are few organic wheat and grain farms in America and the world, most of which are small boutique in nature, which creates a marketplace imbalance between supply and demand. Churchill Global Internationalwill alleviate that imbalance for the whole world at reasonable and affordable pricing for even the poorest of people.

Food with Legs Article – The Red Fife variety of wheat has become a principal icon of local food consumption and production in Ontario.  It’s a landrace of wheat that has the built-in genetic variety to thrive in a relatively wide range of environmental conditions and comes with a great story about how it was grown by pioneer farmers in Ontario a century and a half ago.  The prominent mentions in the 100 Mile Diet, Earth to Table, and Locavore have, I’m sure, helped it’s popularity.

…I wondered is it truly more delicious?  Is it worth the price premium?

For comparison purposes the (which is not Cleator’s) Red Fife was $.40 per 100g from Pantry.

To make this a fair fight I used the highest quality, widely available grocery store bread flour I’ve come across.  In my opinion this is Robin Hood’s Best for Bread Homestyle White ($5.99 for 2.5 kg or $.24 for 100g). To keep things as apples-to- apples as possible I selected the Robin Hood Bread Flour for the comparison.

To truly put both flours through their paces I chose one of the most interesting bread recipes from Peter Reinhart’s The Bread Baker’s Apprentice, his pain à l’ancienne. Reinhart notes that if “used appropriately, it evokes the fullness of flavor from the wheat beyond any other fermentation method I’ve encountered.”  Seems like just what we’re after if we want to compare wheat.

….the Red Fife won on taste. The Red Fife has a pleasant honey smell (honey is often used in bread-making but note that these were both just flour, salt, water, and yeast) to the bread.  They both had a complex, sweet taste of yeast at work but the white shaded slightly to that unpleasant bleach smell that a confined sour dough starter takes on. 

On appearance I can’t think of any objective way to decide.  Sure, the white bread has more golden variation to the colouring and the whole-grain looks heartier and more workmanlike but that difference comes down to triggering preferences and is complicated by the baggage of judging which is healthier.

Nutritionally, (as stated on the packages) they’re actually pretty close to each other. …The Red Fife does blow the white flour out of the water by having four times as much fiber.