Mills Farm Grinds Corn The Old-Fashioned Way

If you’re at all familiar with local farming, chances are you've heard of the Red Mule Grits that come from Mills Farm. You can find Tim and Alice Mills at the Athens Farmer's Market every Saturday.

However, what you may not know about their three-acre dirt farm in northeast Clarke County is that the whole operation is carried out without the luxury of any tractors or modern farming equipment.

Their organic grits are made in a simple, one-of-a-kind, old-fashioned way and one trip to the farm gives one a glimpse of the way things used to be.

The grits and cornmeal that come from the farm are all ground in a unique mill that Tim Mills invented. He owns the farm. The powerhouse behind the mill is Luke, a 1,200 pound red mule that, with a little motivation from his boss, turns out about 100 pounds of grits an hour.

With the help of Luke and his wife Alice, Mills makes grits for several local restaurants, including  and . The farm also ships its products to about 20 states outside of Georgia.

Mills built his extra special mill from the rear end of a two-ton truck without any blueprints or plans. He says the design for it came from none other than the Man upstairs.

“I didn’t have any idea how to build a mill, but God just seemed to put the idea for it in my head. I could just see it and knew I had to build it.”

The mill is certified by the Department of Agriculture, and is the only one of its kind.

The Millses don’t have a website to take orders, so if you want to buy something from the farm, you have to do it by mail-in order or by telephone. This farm is really operated in the old way, which the Mills say is the only way it should be done.

“There ought to be 100 small farms making grits personally for people instead of one big company making all the money,” he said.

Other than making grits, the Mills also grow several organic vegetables like eggplant, beets, tomatoes, squash and several different types of beans.

The grits, cornmeal and polenta (a fancy name for finer ground grits) they produce are all 100% organic, without preservatives or additives. All the products are ground at the time they are ordered to ensure they are as fresh possible.

Hugh Acheson, head chef at Five & Ten, said,""Red Mule Grits are yellow grits, which means they haven't gone through an alkaline process yet, so to me they are more reminiscent of a polenta and should be used in that fashion Tim and Alice's grits are fresh, local, and I treasure the idea of knowing the people who supply my product."

This farm is truly one-of-a-kind, and one visit will make you wonder when things became so complicated. It is like taking a step back in time to when life was simple and people worked hard to get what they needed.

Walking the farm with its owners will get a little dirt on your shoes, and a lot of appreciation in your heart for the work of local farmers and what it takes to get real quality.