MUNGOSWELLS
MALT & MILLING
SHIPPING COSTS:
1-20 kg: £ 11
20-38 kg: £ 21
38-57 kg: £ 32
57-76 kg: £ 42
Scottish Rural Awards 2020 - Rural Business Diversification
Mungoswells Farm
From Field to Flour
Mungoswells Farm spans 550 acres in the heart of East Lothian, a region known for fertile, high-yielding farmland, earning it the title ‘The Breadbasket of Scotland’. Situated north of Haddington, our family-owned farm grows a variety of crops, including the grain that goes into all our flours. When it comes to provenance, few can match the story behind our flour.
We sow the wheat, tend the crop, harvest the grain, mill the flour, and package every bag, right here on the farm. The goal of Mungoswells Malt & Milling is to keep our entire process as local as possible.
Family Owned for 100 Years
Mungoswells Farm has been family run for over a century. In the early 1900s the McDowall family purchased Mungoswells, moving to East Lothian from Galloway. In the 1920s, Major Andrew McDowall made a significant contribution to agricultural innovation by building one of the world’s first electric tractors in the farm workshop.
A History of Innovation
For centuries, East Lothian has been at the forefront of agricultural progress. The origin of farming in East Lothian is estimated to date back around 6,000 years. The region’s fertile farmland proved perfect for crop growing, experiencing dramatic transformation during the Agricultural Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries. The mid-to-late 20th century brought another wave of change, with rapid expansion and technological advancements.
Innovation has continuously been at the heart of Mungoswells in particular. In the early 1800s, Mungoswells became the home of Patrick Shirreff, a pioneering farmer and wheat hybridisation specialist.
In 1819, after a hard frost, Patrick Shirreff noticed one wheat plant that stood apart, untouched by the cold and carrying a heavy head of grain. He saved its seed, multiplied it, and within two years introduced a new variety, Mungoswells wheat. It was the first documented case of a farmer deliberately selecting a single plant to create a new cereal variety.
By 1857, his nursery contained more than 70 unique strains of wheat and oats, many of which spread across Britain, Europe, and America. His work caught the attention of Charles Darwin, who cited Shirreff’s experiments to help frame the theory of evolution and natural selection.
The fields of Mungoswells are more than just farmland, they played a quiet but important role in the history of agricultural science, helping to lay the foundations for the wheat breeding practices we still rely on today.
(N. Scott Shirreff, 2017)
The Maltings & Mill
In 2006, Angus McDowall began developing a small maltings to process barley and wheat grown on the farm, producing malt for local brewers and distillers. Recognising that most microbreweries lacked their own crushing facilities, a small mill was additionally required.
The following year, Angus discovered a pristine ex-Swiss army mill, complete with a trailer, spares, and camouflage netting. Originally built in 1977 by Bühler, the Rolls-Royce of flour mill manufacturers, this mobile unit was designed to provide fresh flour to soldiers during missions. Seeing its potential, Angus transported it to Mungoswells Farm. With his background in Agricultural Mechanisation, Angus and the team almost entirely deconstructed the mill before carefully rebuilding it on-site. Modifying and extending the design, he transformed the mill into a larger and more complex operation.
The process was far from straightforward, with numerous trial and error adjustments along the way. But after several years of refinement, Angus was finally satisfied with the result. Today, our award-winning operation produces exceptional Scottish flour, made using grain that is grown, milled, and packaged on-site.
Today, our award-winning operation produces a range of quality Scottish flours using grain that is grown, milled, and packaged on the farm, available in both organic and conventional options.
The Importance of Locally Grown
Food transport accounted for around 20% of global CO₂ emissions in 2023. At Mungoswells, our grain is grown on the farm or sourced as close to home as possible. By prioritising local production, we can deliver high-quality Scottish ingredients while keeping environmental impact to a minimum.
Although Mungoswells spans 550 acres, we cannot always grow enough grain to meet demand. When needed, we work with trusted neighbouring farms who grow additional varieties to our specification, maintaining the excellent provenance of our flour.
In a world of increasingly long supply chains, growing locally offers a better way forward. Knowing exactly where your flour comes from, right down to the fields it was grown in, creates trust and traceability that global supply chains often cannot match.
By using Mungoswells flour, you’re directly supporting British farming and helping build a more resilient, sustainable food system. As demand grows for local, traceable ingredients, our flours let you showcase both quality and origin.
Our Flours
Unlike commercial white flour, small darker flecks can be seen throughout the flour produced here at Mungoswells. These are tiny particles of bran, the outer protective skin on a wheat grain. These particles of bran contain additional proteins and fibre and add further flavour to the flour.
Our wholemeal range contains the entire grain (bran, germ, and endosperm), providing greater nutritional value. The wheat germ is rich in B vitamins and antioxidants and, together with the bran, offers extra fibre to support digestive health.
Our farm-milled flours can be used to create a variety of foods, from hearty breads and malted loaves to pizzas, cakes, and scones. Available in 1.5 kg and 16 kg bags, our flours are perfect for both home bakers and professional kitchens.
We offer a complete range of flours for all baking needs, including plain, self-raising, strong, and extra-strong bread flours, wholemeal and brown varieties, spelt flours, light and dark rye flours, and crushed malted wheat, available in both Organic and conventional options.
Small-batch production
Processed entirely on-site
Supports local farming
Low food miles travelled