Five minutes for you

TECNARO simply believes that there is no reason to use plastic. There’s no trick here. No empty claims, for nothing less than a revolution is in progress in Ilsfeld near Heilbronn in Southern Germany. It’s already out there: in the Audi R8 and in Formula 1 racecars, in coat hangers for Benetton or – Pfitzer points to a baby’s rattle – in toys and watch cases: the petrocleum-free technology of the company TECNARO, The Biopolymer Company.

Casual and lively

Wolfgang Mock GmbH, as measured by the here-today-gone-tomorrow age, is almost revolutionary. It warns that the industrial production of foodstuffs has practically made the core elements of our diet unrecognizable to us. "Whoever pours a beer and the waits six weeks before drinking it", says Wolfgang Mock with a sly smile, will not be interested in the Mockmill, the high-quality household stone mills his company makes. For the last 35 years, on a 19^th-century farm – near the bustling city of Frankfurt and yet right close to nature – Wolfgang Mock maintains a no less life-changing, consciously alternative lifestyle with colleagues, friends and family. This pleasure-seeker chooses wisely the elements of his life. He enjoys his work. Seeming ten-years younger than his actual age, Wolfgang Mock recognized early the signs of our times.

Today, the number of people with a high level of health awareness who wish to live in recognition of and respect for nature and its treasures is growing. They are people who want – like him – to move away from cheaply produced mass products to nutrition rich in natural energy and vitamins. They want food that strengthens and protects the body, that preserves the world’s resources and that promotes a lifestyle made richer through attention to detail. And there is a particular food that for decades has been Wolfgang Mock’s particular favorite, the German’s favorite food – bread.

In a country where new-style bakeries are are popping up everywher, baking pre-prepared pastry by means of chemical props, Wolfgang Mock has been rolling up his sleeves. He wants to see a grain mill in every kitchen within 20 years. This stated corporate goal is a testimony to the company’s high standards. And yet people believe Wolfgang Mock. His high-quality Corundum-Ceramic stone grinders he has designed and produced over the last 30 years make up about 70 per cent of all household mills sold and place him prominently among European market leaders. If you are looking for a solid household mill, do not overlook the name Mock.

Mill in the best style

The newest Mockmills come dressed in a Tecnaro housing. First the Mockmill 100 and now the Mockmill 200 are encased in a stylish housing made of Tecnaro’s ARBOBLEND®. This is one of the three basic granulate formulas Tecnaro GmbH offers. And each of those three can in turn be processed as needed: by injection moulding, by extrusion, by deep-drawing, by melt-spinning or by calendaring. The granules, which are similar in appearance to smaller wood pellets, can therefore replace many plastic granulates – are all made from renewable raw materials and are biodegradable.

ARBOFORM®, ARBOBLEND® and ARBOFILL® are the thermoplastic ligno-, sugar- or starch-, generally plant-based biopolymers produced by TECNARO. The past 20 years have seen more than 3,500 formulations for petroleum-free plastic replacement materials developed with these materials, covering a wide range of applications. The TECNARO bioplastics compounds were designed to be used in all possible applications – from the finest filament for threads, yarns and textiles, for 3D printing, for thin film or thick panels. TECNARO’s bioplastics are used in petroleum-free UHU glue sticks, in the famous Edding Textmaker, in Tupperware and in cases for iPhones. What TECNARO or its partners make of these materials is resistant and durable in every way. The products are watertight and tear, shock and heat resistant. Despite all that, they are absolutely biodegradable and in every case carry the claim of being made with renewable raw materials – like the Mockmill.

Sustainability meets self-determination

Wolfgang Mock points out: "We have never used housing made of petroleum-based plastics for our mills." It would not have suited the company philosophy. The woodworker’s wooden cabinet was, in the past, the sustainable material of choice. Now, thanks to Tecnaro, the element of contemporary design enters the picture. The use of Tecnaro’s “moulded wood” also makes it easier to produce larger quantities of mills. The injection molding process allows for more streamlined, hence economical and faster production. "This is how the Darmstadt-based family-run company is approaching the market, and the high-quality mills have received a warm welcome in markets across Europe and in the USA.

The new Wolfgang Mock GmbH has the ambition to far exceed the 15,000 mills sold in one of the best years by his earlier company KoMo GmbH. And Wolfgang Mock radiates confidence when he considers his decision to base his latest mills on the cooperation with Tecnaro. Mock is regarded as the forerunner of the industry. An “Aha!” experience ignited his passion. The 70-year-old remembers how impressed he was when he ate his first slice of bread made from freshly ground flour. "Wow! There were flavors in the air, and the bread was moist and delicious.  Suddenly eating a slice of bread was a great pleasure, comparable to sipping freshly ground coffee." As eloquent as he is authentic, Wolfgang Mock describes how his whole way of eating changed, and how that also changed him. "The energy came back, I enjoyed everyday life more, enjoyed everything more. I suddenly had a lot more time, because I was no longer so sluggish, tired … "

You’re in charge!

Mock mentions five reasons for taking the five minutes to mill one’s own flour – or even spices and legumes. These are improved health, taking charge of what one eats, the taste experience one gets, the protection of our living culture, and the adventure one experiences through discovering millable foods. "And the overall result is huge," he says. Freshly ground foods contain the full complements of vital elements and the full richness of the whole grain. This provided the body with with energy and supports sustained concentration. Pastries made from flour milled just-in-time from good grain contain valuable minerals and fiber. Unlike white flour products, which clog our intestines and make us sick, freshly ground, whole-grain foods support our immune system.

Whether stand-alone mills or ingeniously conceived grinder attachments for common kitchen machines such as Kitchenaid, AEG or KENMORE: Mock products are robust, easy to handle, easy to clean and now also eye candy for the kitchen. Of course, as a responsible family father, co-operation partner Jürgen Pfitzer, TECNARO GmbH CEO, already has a Mockmill 200 at home.

With his colleague Helmut Nägele, the managing director founded TECNARO in 1998 as a spin-off from the Fraunhofer Institute. Pfitzer said, "Anyone who uses the somewhat higher costs of the environmentally friendly TECNARO products is failing to take into account the costs of our continued use of petroleum-based plastics: damage to the environment, the wars fought over petroleum and the related refugee flows." The company’s high-quality, thermoplastic materials are developed, produced, and distributed by TECNARO itself.

Know-how and tradition

It just does one good, and optimism flows, when one listens to the Swabian-Baden Duo Pfitzer and Nägele and the man from Darmstadt with his casual lifestyle – despite all the current blundering of mankind. For where others are in a state of shock in the face of the plastic whirlpools and dead animals decorating the Oceans, or the nutritional calamities of obesity, diabetes and autoimmune diseases on the other hand, these German entrepreneurs long ago went to work, each in his own way, at his own pace, at his own personal risk, on solutions.

These are companies that are part of the process of making positive change. Away from the unconscious, all-accepting consumer, to the conscious and energetic modern human – with a deep sense of responsibility – to himself, to his children and grandchildren. Here, future-oriented know-how meets traditional crafts, TECNARO and MOCK meet with environmental awareness. And with both, it is all about love for life, a real, self-determined way of life.