The return of the Dutch miller

The Dutch began building windmills around the year 1200 to pump water, and then came those designed to grind grain. In the 19th century, these buildings that dot the flat landscape of the Netherlands together numbered around 10,000 at full capacity. Indispensable in their day for the development of agriculture and industry, and for keeping the land dry, there are currently about 1,200 left. During the pandemic, forced and temporary confinement at home launched people to try oven recipes and, since then, the trend to obtain flour from millers continues to rise.

Currently, 1,624 Dutch people have a diploma to maintain a windmill at full capacity, and another 87 have water mills. Most of them are volunteers who work in their free hours - there are also tourist mills. Only fifty millers operate full time, as professionals who earn money from their work. Training classes to obtain the degree last two years, and the program pays special attention to safety measures. All applicants must pass a theoretical test and a practical test.

10% of the students are women, while in 1985 there were only two apprentices. Little by little, the stereotype of a lonely, male miller of a certain age is losing strength and a new generation of fans arrives. With a hundred instructors, if you pass the course you obtain a certificate from the Dutch Mills Association. “We add about 150 new members annually and both the central government and the provincial and local authorities contribute funds, because the mills are a tradition and without care they quickly spoil,” says Tom Kreuning, secretary of the guild.

The great role of bread

There are about 1,100 windmills and a hundred more water mills spread across the country. Although they were used over time to produce grain, cut wood for ships and houses, grind seeds to obtain oil, or control the water level of a field, the favorite product of recent times is freshly ground flour. This is largely due to the prominent place occupied by bread in Dutch life. According to a survey carried out in 2018 by the Dutch Baking Center (NBC), 74% of the population consider it a part of their cultural heritage. Bread is more popular than fruit, muesli or vegetable smoothies, and makes up the bulk of the most common lunch. NBC is an organization that advises the baking industry, and the survey was responded to by 800 people. In 2023, in another similar survey, 88% of responses indicated whole wheat bread as their favorite. Since most of the mill graduates are volunteers and cover the costs of personal equipment, the earnings of those who are self-employed depend on how much they have milled per month.

Whole wheat flour is a protected designation in the Netherlands, and by not separating the grain from the germ of the cereal – the reproductive part that germinates – the millers ensure that it has more flavor and is more nutritious. There are mills with a website as well as a physical and digital store that sell a wide variety of products. There is wheat, spelled, rye, buckwheat and corn flour. Also wheat, oat and barley flakes; wheat bran, corn and wheat grits; dry yeast, flax, pumpkin, sesame, poppy, sunflower or mustard seeds...

Dutch mills did their work regularly until the beginning of the 20th century, until the progressive introduction of steam engines and diesel and electric motors. In the last hundred years, nearly 9,000 of these unique buildings that laid the foundations of the national industry have disappeared. In addition to being the hallmark of Dutch landscaping, mills are today considered monuments, and part of them can be visited on National Mill Day. In 2024, it will be held on the weekend of May 11 and 12.

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