Our Story

Small town values, big business

What’s in a name? In the case of Small Town Specialities, it’s our roots. Both of us come from small towns in California, Chico and Princeton respectively. And in our opinion, being from a small town isn’t just our history; it’s also our future. We believe in the small-town mindset of being connected to the community and the land. We think everyone should know where their food comes from, and experience real down-home, farm-fresh quality from a family farmer, just like generations before us. We’re proud to be farmers, and proud to serve our neighbors.

“This is who we are. It’s where we do business, it’s what we have to offer….and we love doing it.”

  • How we got started

    Our company’s story begins back in 2018 in California. Just like many farming fairytales, ours started with some (almost) magical beans. One of Small Town Specialties' partners was given a handful of unique black chickpeas to propagate. Also known as garbanzo beans, they originated in Mesopotamia and have been around for thousands of years.

    Did You Know…. “In 2016 the average person ate 1.6 pounds of garbanzos in a year. Let’s try to make these black garbanzo beans mainstream–even if they’re only 1% of those, it’d really be something!” Allen, Co-owner of Small Town Specialities

    We’d never seen anything like them, but recognized they were a marketable commercial crop as they are a protein packed superfood and visually unique. Fast forward several years, and suddenly we were in the bean business together. Then we added red walnuts, and from there the company expanded to include a whole product line of heirloom legume, flours, and nuts that are grown-in-the-USA, gluten-free, non-GMO, and more. Our goal is to stock hard-to-come-by superfoods and make them accessible to everyone in our online store. No matter what kind of food or retail business you're in, if you've got our beans—you're a part of our community!

  • Family Owned and Operated

    When we say this company is family owned and operated, we mean it. This is how it’s been from day one. In the early days of our business, kids played at the wearhouse while mom and dad packaged orders. Today, the younger kids are often on the farm and help with irrigation, while our older daughter works with packaging at the warehouse.

    Our family is also the motivation and inspiration for many of our products. When our daughter was diagnosed with celiac disease and needed to adopt a gluten-free diet, it was one of the reasons we started producing Lupin Flour. Like all our products, this flour is gluten-free and a delicious alternative to regular white flour. And we’re equally proud to note everything we carry is grown in the USA!

A family favorite: harvest time! Watch our video below.