Central Bean Co. – growing the best beans in the Northwest. Don Grebb was born with a farmers’ commitment to crops and land. Born in Colorado, into a farm family that grew beans, it wasn’t long before he made farming his life’s work. Armed with a desire to learn and a sixteen-year-old’s determination he started farming on his own. A few winters of defending his beans from Colorado hail storms lead him to set off for kinder weather and land to call his own. He hoped to pass that same love of land and farming to his sons, Tom and Jerry. Initially Tom preferred ditch digging to farming and Jerry took an interest in “bean counting” and became an accountant.
Things changed when a dry bean warehouse came up for sale in 1983. The Grebb Family bought it to provide resources for the local farmers. Then came the decision of who to run the warehouse, now called Central Bean. “We had a ditch digger, a bean counter and a bean grower,” Tom says smiling. “So the ditch digger got to run it.” Under Tom’s management Central Bean became the only Food Alliance certified bean handler and processor in the country and is renowned for their unique process which has 100% traceability of the beans from growth to sale.
It was through Central Bean that Tom decided to follow his father’s footsteps and start his own farm. Haricot Farms was created for the Grebb Family to explore sustainable growing practices. While some considered Haricot Farms to be a little on the crazy side, they have introduced a number of unique, environmentally friendly and successful farming methods to Central Washington farm country. Perhaps the craziest of these ideas was to try no-till farming for dry soak beans. No-till and minimal-till farming are the most non-invasive forms of planting and harvesting. Because the soil is never tilled the natural, beneficial nutrients and insects are preserved, which in turn produce more natural, healthier crops. Tom doesn’t worry about the things that bother most farmers, like soil erosion, since no-till farming keeps the earths precious nutrients right where they are needed – growing the best beans in the Northwest.
The Grebb family is proud that their crazy farm has achieved Food Alliance certification and serves as a model for sustainable farming practices throughout the country.. Their commitment continues to growing beans in the most environmentally-friendly way possible.