Letter to The National Agricultural Hall of Fame
February 11, 2012
The National Agricultural Hall of Fame
630 Hall of Fame Drive
Bonner Springs, Kansas 66012
Dear People,
I recently learned that the famous agricultural chemist, Charles F. Schnabel, Sr., has not yet been
inducted into the Agricultural Hall of Fame. I am writing to nominate him as a major contributor
to agriculture throughout the world.
I am a co-founder of Pines International, Inc., a company that specializes in growing, harvesting,
packaging and marketing wheatgrass and other cereal grasses. As a result, during the past 36
years, I have frequently been interviewed by various media about our products. Each time, I end
up discussing the work of Charles F. Schnabel. It is difficult to talk about the history of cereal
grass and alfalfa without mentioning his name.
I also authored the book, Cereal Grass: What's in it for you!, which is now in its fifth printing. It
contains a dedication to Charles F. Schnabel, Sr. There is no question that he opened the door to
scientific research on cereal grass. After Schnabel’s initial work in the mid1920s that showed
chickens nearly tripled their winter egg production when a small amount of cereal grass was
added to their diet, he went on to find benefits with nearly every kind of livestock. His research
documented larger litters, richer milk, more milk, less infant mortality, better fur and improved
general health when a small amount of dehydrated cereal grass was added to the animal’s food
ration.
He also tested cereal grass at every stage of growth and determined the highest level of nutrition
was achieved just prior to and at the jointing stage. He developed a dehydration method that
captured that high nutritional level. His research led directly to dozens of dehydration facilities
in every state where cereal grains and alfalfa are grown. These facilities have produced millions
of tons of cereal grass and alfalfa for both human and animal consumption. Many are still in
operation.
Over the last 75 years, facilities based on Charles F. Schnabel’s research have produced billions
of dollars in animal feeds as well as billions in human food supplements. Our own company
recently invested more than $4 million for two new dehydrators based on Schnabel’s design.
These facilities are being used exclusively for drying cereal grass and alfalfa for human
consumption. Other companies also have dehydration facilities used for cereal grass as a food or
as a nutrient-dense ingredient in foods.
An estimated 40,000 acres of cereal grass are harvested each year worldwide for human
consumption. Cereal grass for the natural food industry is being grown and dried in Kansas,
Iowa, Colorado, Utah, Montana, Florida, New York and California. That is just for the United
States. Cereal grass as a human food is also being grown and dried in Canada, Australia, New
Zealand, Japan, China, Ecuador, Germany, India and Russia Most of these drying facilities are
based on Schnabel’s original research into the best method to protect and preserve vitamins and
green food nutrients.
Millions of people worldwide also grow wheatgrass in their homes or in greenhouses. Although
this method of growing cereal grass is nothing like what Schnabel researched, the books and
literature in support of this highly unnatural way to grow cereal grass often refer to Charles F.
Schnabel as “the father of wheatgrass.” When you consider this popular trend, it can be said that
cereal grass is now being grown for human consumption in kitchens of every country on earth.
When I first started what became my life’s work in 1975, I was very interested in the many
research studies by Charles F. Schnabel on the use of dehydrated cereal grass as an animal food,
but it was his work with cereal grass as a human food and dozens of research papers published in
medical journals that most inspired me 37 years ago. In nearly every case, the medical studies
were conducted with dehydrated cereal grass provided by Schnabel.
In order to make this miraculous food available to more people, Schnabel started Cerophyl
laboratories in the 1930s. Cerophyl was a company that produced what can rightfully be called
“the world's first multivitamin.” At about the same time Schnabel was documenting the
nutritional and health benefits of dehydrated cereal grass for both animals and humans, vitamins
were being discovered, Schnabel applied these new vitamin analysis protocols to dehydrated
cereal grass harvested at the jointing stage. In nearly every case, he found that cereal grass
contained a higher level of vitamins than other foods. With all the discoveries, people were
clamoring for a way to increase the vitamins in their diets. Schnabel's Cerophyl was the
answer. With the recommended 20 tablets per day, people could receive their minimum daily
requirements of most of the known vitamins.
Cerophyl's market took off immediately. Nearly every pharmacy in the United States carried the
product. Due to the onslaught of articles in medical journals and the FDA’s approval as a food,
doctors routinely recommended Cerophyl to their patients. It also had a growing international
market. Several dehydrating facilities in Kansas were working at maximum capacity, harvesting
thousands of acres of cereal grass at the jointing stage to keep up with the demand. Cerophyl
became a popular brand name for two decades.
In the 1950s, the widespread popularity of Cerophyl started to wane with the introduction of
One-A-Day Vitamins. It was an era that lauded "the miracles of modern science." People
reasoned that it was better to take one tablet of synthetic vitamins per day than to obtain their
vitamins from a natural source by taking twenty Cerophyl tablets. The popularity of Cerophyl
gave way to synthetic vitamins that people thought were better and more convenient.
Schnabel developed a version of Cerophyl, fortified with synthetic vitamins, so the consumer
could reduce the daily requirement from twenty tablets to four, but this second product had
limited success. Although Cerophyl continued to be sold to a limited number of long-time
customers, it was not until our company, Pines International, reintroduced dehydrated cereal
grass (specifically wheat grass) in 1976 as a source of the nutrition in dark green leafy vegetables
that the use of cereal grass as a human food began to increase again.
Since starting Pines International, scores of other companies worldwide have copied our message
and have developed products with cereal grass as either the only ingredient or the main
ingredient. If you walk into any large natural food store today, you will find a section called
"green foods" with dozens of products that contain cereal grass. You will find quotes from
Charles F. Schnabel and references to his research in the literature of most of these products.
You will find books about growing your own wheatgrass that credit Charles F. Schnabel. You
can find trays of greenhouse grown wheatgrass. You will also find trays of wheatgrass in nearly
every juice shop in shopping malls throughout the world because of those books. If you Google,
"Charles F. Schnabel," you will find nearly 500,000 references to him and to his work.
For me and for more than 200 stockholders of Pines International, we owe our company's
success to Charles F. Schnabel. Hundreds of employees and farmers at Pines International over
the years have benefitted because of his work. Thousands of people around the world are
employed by companies that exist because of his work, and millions of consumers use
dehydrated cereal grass each day or grow wheatgrass in their kitchen based on books that
consider Charles F. Schnabel to be “the father of wheatgrass.”
Considering 75 years of improved health for both animals and humans as a result Charles F.
Schnabel’s research and the economic impact that grew out of it, Schnabel’s contribution to both
animal and human nutrition has made him one of the great pioneers of agriculture during the 20th
Century. It is with heartfelt appreciation for his work, that I nominated Charles F. Schnabel, Sr.,
to the Agricultural Hall of Fame.
Sincerely,
Ron Seibold
February 11, 2012
The National Agricultural Hall of Fame
630 Hall of Fame Drive
Bonner Springs, Kansas 66012
Dear People,
I recently learned that the famous agricultural chemist, Charles F. Schnabel, Sr., has not yet been
inducted into the Agricultural Hall of Fame. I am writing to nominate him as a major contributor
to agriculture throughout the world.
I am a co-founder of Pines International, Inc., a company that specializes in growing, harvesting,
packaging and marketing wheatgrass and other cereal grasses. As a result, during the past 36
years, I have frequently been interviewed by various media about our products. Each time, I end
up discussing the work of Charles F. Schnabel. It is difficult to talk about the history of cereal
grass and alfalfa without mentioning his name.
I also authored the book, Cereal Grass: What's in it for you!, which is now in its fifth printing. It
contains a dedication to Charles F. Schnabel, Sr. There is no question that he opened the door to
scientific research on cereal grass. After Schnabel’s initial work in the mid1920s that showed
chickens nearly tripled their winter egg production when a small amount of cereal grass was
added to their diet, he went on to find benefits with nearly every kind of livestock. His research
documented larger litters, richer milk, more milk, less infant mortality, better fur and improved
general health when a small amount of dehydrated cereal grass was added to the animal’s food
ration.
He also tested cereal grass at every stage of growth and determined the highest level of nutrition
was achieved just prior to and at the jointing stage. He developed a dehydration method that
captured that high nutritional level. His research led directly to dozens of dehydration facilities
in every state where cereal grains and alfalfa are grown. These facilities have produced millions
of tons of cereal grass and alfalfa for both human and animal consumption. Many are still in
operation.
Over the last 75 years, facilities based on Charles F. Schnabel’s research have produced billions
of dollars in animal feeds as well as billions in human food supplements. Our own company
recently invested more than $4 million for two new dehydrators based on Schnabel’s design.
These facilities are being used exclusively for drying cereal grass and alfalfa for human
consumption. Other companies also have dehydration facilities used for cereal grass as a food or
as a nutrient-dense ingredient in foods.
An estimated 40,000 acres of cereal grass are harvested each year worldwide for human
consumption. Cereal grass for the natural food industry is being grown and dried in Kansas,
Iowa, Colorado, Utah, Montana, Florida, New York and California. That is just for the United
States. Cereal grass as a human food is also being grown and dried in Canada, Australia, New
Zealand, Japan, China, Ecuador, Germany, India and Russia Most of these drying facilities are
based on Schnabel’s original research into the best method to protect and preserve vitamins and
green food nutrients.
Millions of people worldwide also grow wheatgrass in their homes or in greenhouses. Although
this method of growing cereal grass is nothing like what Schnabel researched, the books and
literature in support of this highly unnatural way to grow cereal grass often refer to Charles F.
Schnabel as “the father of wheatgrass.” When you consider this popular trend, it can be said that
cereal grass is now being grown for human consumption in kitchens of every country on earth.
When I first started what became my life’s work in 1975, I was very interested in the many
research studies by Charles F. Schnabel on the use of dehydrated cereal grass as an animal food,
but it was his work with cereal grass as a human food and dozens of research papers published in
medical journals that most inspired me 37 years ago. In nearly every case, the medical studies
were conducted with dehydrated cereal grass provided by Schnabel.
In order to make this miraculous food available to more people, Schnabel started Cerophyl
laboratories in the 1930s. Cerophyl was a company that produced what can rightfully be called
“the world's first multivitamin.” At about the same time Schnabel was documenting the
nutritional and health benefits of dehydrated cereal grass for both animals and humans, vitamins
were being discovered, Schnabel applied these new vitamin analysis protocols to dehydrated
cereal grass harvested at the jointing stage. In nearly every case, he found that cereal grass
contained a higher level of vitamins than other foods. With all the discoveries, people were
clamoring for a way to increase the vitamins in their diets. Schnabel's Cerophyl was the
answer. With the recommended 20 tablets per day, people could receive their minimum daily
requirements of most of the known vitamins.
Cerophyl's market took off immediately. Nearly every pharmacy in the United States carried the
product. Due to the onslaught of articles in medical journals and the FDA’s approval as a food,
doctors routinely recommended Cerophyl to their patients. It also had a growing international
market. Several dehydrating facilities in Kansas were working at maximum capacity, harvesting
thousands of acres of cereal grass at the jointing stage to keep up with the demand. Cerophyl
became a popular brand name for two decades.
In the 1950s, the widespread popularity of Cerophyl started to wane with the introduction of
One-A-Day Vitamins. It was an era that lauded "the miracles of modern science." People
reasoned that it was better to take one tablet of synthetic vitamins per day than to obtain their
vitamins from a natural source by taking twenty Cerophyl tablets. The popularity of Cerophyl
gave way to synthetic vitamins that people thought were better and more convenient.
Schnabel developed a version of Cerophyl, fortified with synthetic vitamins, so the consumer
could reduce the daily requirement from twenty tablets to four, but this second product had
limited success. Although Cerophyl continued to be sold to a limited number of long-time
customers, it was not until our company, Pines International, reintroduced dehydrated cereal
grass (specifically wheat grass) in 1976 as a source of the nutrition in dark green leafy vegetables
that the use of cereal grass as a human food began to increase again.
Since starting Pines International, scores of other companies worldwide have copied our message
and have developed products with cereal grass as either the only ingredient or the main
ingredient. If you walk into any large natural food store today, you will find a section called
"green foods" with dozens of products that contain cereal grass. You will find quotes from
Charles F. Schnabel and references to his research in the literature of most of these products.
You will find books about growing your own wheatgrass that credit Charles F. Schnabel. You
can find trays of greenhouse grown wheatgrass. You will also find trays of wheatgrass in nearly
every juice shop in shopping malls throughout the world because of those books. If you Google,
"Charles F. Schnabel," you will find nearly 500,000 references to him and to his work.
For me and for more than 200 stockholders of Pines International, we owe our company's
success to Charles F. Schnabel. Hundreds of employees and farmers at Pines International over
the years have benefitted because of his work. Thousands of people around the world are
employed by companies that exist because of his work, and millions of consumers use
dehydrated cereal grass each day or grow wheatgrass in their kitchen based on books that
consider Charles F. Schnabel to be “the father of wheatgrass.”
Considering 75 years of improved health for both animals and humans as a result Charles F.
Schnabel’s research and the economic impact that grew out of it, Schnabel’s contribution to both
animal and human nutrition has made him one of the great pioneers of agriculture during the 20th
Century. It is with heartfelt appreciation for his work, that I nominated Charles F. Schnabel, Sr.,
to the Agricultural Hall of Fame.
Sincerely,
Ron Seibold