Two water mills that date back to Englan’s early Norman era are both battling around the clock to meet the demand for flour during Britain’s coronavirus crisis.
Grade II listed Charlecote Mill, in Stratford-upon-Avon, which dates back to 1068 – just two years after the Battle of Hastings – and Sturminster Newton Mill, in Dorset, built around 1086, are mentioned in the Domesday Book.
Both are now producing flour alongside commerical powerhouses like Allied Mills and Hovis, with Charlecote doubling its annual production of 70 tonnes, while Sturminster Newton, which was little more than a tourist destination a few months ago, milling around a tonne of wheat to produce 200 bags of flour weighing 3.3lbs.
The coronavirus lockdown has seen a spike in demand as people with time on their hands have turned to home baking, leading to empty supermarket shelves. The shortage of smaller 1.5kg-3kg bags has fueled fears of a national flour supply shortage.
But the National Association of British and Irish Millers (nabim) the trade association for the UK and Irish flour milling industry says its is availabity of smaller packets, and not the flour iself, that has been the problem, which expalins why bread has remained relatively unaffected.
The mill is working flat out to meet demand from domestic bakers. Karl Grevatt, the miller, wheels a bag of wheat grain to the chain hoist to be raised to the hopper on the top floor of the mill at Charlecote Mill
Demand has been so fierce, miller Karl Grevatt has even been abused and offered bribes to keep customers supplied with flour.
The National Association of British and Irish Millers (nabim) the trade association for the UK and Irish flour milling industry says that the problem is due to the sudden surge in demand for smaller sized bags, and that supplies of commercial flour have been unaffected.
Customers continue to be able to buy commercially produced bread and it is domestic bakers, making their own baked goods, that are fuelling the surge in demand for more flour.
Since the coronavirus lock-down, a shortage of smaller 1.5kg-3kg bags on supermarket shelves has led to fears about supplies of flour nationally.
Less than 5 percent of UK flour is sold through shops and supermarkets, according to the association. The majority is produced in bulk and put into bags of more than 16kg and sold to bakeries or other food manufacturers.
Grocery sales of flour were up 92% in the four weeks to 22 March compared to the same period in 2019, according to consumer analysts Kantar.
Nabim has been working with retailers to create a nationwide ‘retail flour network’ of sellers who can provide the public with bags over 3kg normally supplied to caterers and commercial businesses.
Mill worker Shashika Poopalasingham pours a bag of wheat grain into the hopper that feeds the millstone at Charlecote Mill
McDougalls and Be-Ro owner Premier Foods’ baking category brand director Helen Touchaise told The Grocer she was ‘confident there are no supply issues’ and that the company was ‘committed to playing our part in keeping the nation fed’.
‘Our dedicated factory colleagues are working around the clock to quickly replenish customer stock levels,’ she said.
Mr Grevatt, 38, said: ‘Pretty much as soon as loo rolls went out of the news it became apparent that flour was going to take their place.
‘Who would have known that flour would become the must-have ingredient, pretty much above everything else?
‘At the moment I am carrying 1,000kg – the maximum my van will take – on every single delivery.
‘On top of that I would normally deliver perhaps 80 small bags a week to local shops.
‘I’m usually milling ten tonnes every eight weeks and at the moment I’m milling ten tonnes in about three weeks.
‘The demand has just grown far beyond the capacity of the building and the mill.
‘It’s turned into a seven-week waiting list.
‘I’ve got inquires from all over the UK and even had one from Turkey.
‘It’s just been quite baffling really.’
Mr Grevatt, who has run the mill for eight years after taking over the lease in 2012, added: ‘Believe it or not, I have had a fair amount of abuse, attempted bribes and guilt trips from people who think I should be able to supply them with flour immediately.
‘Miller’, Imogen Bittner transporting the wheat to the mill before it’s ground into flour. An historic water mill that witnessed the Black Death and the Plague has whirred back into production to help meet demand of wheat during the coronavirus pandemic. Sturminster Newton Mill in Dorset was mentioned in the Domesday Book
‘I’m trying to supply the local community and we’re now relying on the smaller, traditional mills to fill the gap now when the commercial mills can’t supply, and this is up and down the country.
‘It’s all the traditional mills who are doing their bit, trying to supply the local community at a very hard time.
‘They’re usually run by volunteers and they do it for the love of doing it, not for profit.’
Three years ago the mill was under threat from closure over controversial plans to deepen the river which flows past it near Stratford-upon-Avon, Warks.
The Avon and Navigation Trust set out plans to deepen the river which powers the mill as part of a £650 million plan to boost tourism.
The plan would involve creating a passable river route along the 12 miles between Stratford-upon-Avon and Warwick to re-join the Grand Union Canal.
This would be achieved through increasing water depth and installing locks along the River Avon at the back of the mill in Hampton Lucy, Warks.
Mr Grevatt said: ‘To make this stretch of river navigable the watercourse will need to be deepened and altered and here lies the problem.
‘If the water levels are adjusted and the water level is increased below the mill this prevents the water wheels being able to turn.
‘Under the existing proposal the water level will increase by about two feet, which is enough to prevent the mill from running.
‘Increasing the water level will effectively put a brake on the system’s operation and increase the risk of flooding.’
The mill, which is the only one of its kind in Warwickshire, operates a two-wheel system with a high take of water to the rear and low take to the front.
There are now less than 100 water mills left in the country with only ten producing flour commercially.
Stratford-upon-Avon District Council is still to make a final decision on the scheme leaving the future of the mill in the balance.
Mills across the country have also ramped up production to meet demand.
At Wessex Mill in Oxfordshire, the family business is running at 24-hour operation for the first time in its 125-year history.
Sturminster Newton Mill in Dorset which was standing during the Black Death has whirred back into production to help meet demand for wheat.
It was also mentioned in the Domesday Book in 1086.
Today the picturesque building on the banks of the River Stour survives as a working tourist attraction that sells its flour to visitors.
But with tourists in lockdown, millers Pete Loosmore and Imogen Bittner have turned it back into commercial production. And in just 10 days they have already milled a tonne of wheat – which is usually a year’s supply for the facility.
The mill, which has been run by local charity the Sturminster Newton Heritage Trust since 1994, has already supplied hundreds bags of flour weighing 3.3lbs to local grocers and bakers.
Mrs Bittner said: ‘We were due to open on March 28 and had already bought our grain for the season. Without visitors, we’ll be taking quite a hit but this will help to make up for a bit of the lost income. We’re only doing this while the crisis lasts and it’s not only helping us but the local community because there is a shortage of flour.
‘In one way we have an advantage over the bigger mills, which are used to selling large sacks to the wholesale trade and don’t have the machinery or manpower to put the flour into small bags.’