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Hatfield was staying plenty
busy but deep down, he probably had some things going around in his head
because Tommy Hatfield has always found great pleasure in a challenge.
Those who know him know he’s
never been one to stay idle for very long.
In February of 2004, Hatfield
received a “little piece of paper” from his doctor that strongly
suggested a change in lifestyle would be in his best interests. The
doctor wanted him to lose weight and change his eating habits to clear
up some less-than-optimum blood chemistries, among other things.
A challenge, yes, but probably
not the kind that Tommy Hatfield was expecting.
Faced with those suggestions
from his physician, Hatfield set out to do something about his health.
He had no idea then that it would lead him down a completely new path, a
path totally different from the hardware business he’d been around his
entire life.
His new product, pecan oil
bottled under the name of Kinloch Plantation Products, has had his full
attention for the past year, and the Pecan Oil – The Healthy Oil for the
Everyday Gourmet -- hit the market just before Christmas.
Most people you talk to are
well acquainted with olive oil, but hardly anyone had ever heard of
pecan oil until Hatfield came along.
June Lang, a longtime family
friend, was the first person to nudge Hatfield about pecan oil back in
1998. Lang, formerly of Winnsboro and a cookbook author and caterer in
the Washington, D. C. area, knew Hatfield’s business acumen and
mentioned it to him… more than once.
“June had a good friend,
ex-Georgia Senator Sam Nunn, who owns some pecan groves in Georgia and
encouraged the use and development of pecan oil,” he said. “At the time
that June first approached me, I was up to my eyeballs in the lumber
business and frankly had no time to fool with it.”
Unknown to anyone at the time,
Hatfield’s wife Eleanor would play a pivotal role in a business venture
that would ultimately bear fruit this year.
“About the same time June was
talking to me about pecan oil six years ago, Eleanor was in Chapel Hill,
NC and visited a gourmet shop called ‘Southern Seasonings’ where she
bought a small bottle of French pecan oil,” he said. “She brought it
home and it ended up in the refrigerator where it was basically
forgotten about.”
Hatfield’s refrigerator at
home is obviously like most others in America in that the small bottle
sat hidden and unopened until early 2004, when Hatfield went looking for
it not long after he and his doctor had their visit.
“I rummaged around and there
it was, with an expiration date of October, 1998,” he said. “Because it
had not been opened and had been protected from the light, and at a
constant temperature, the oil was just fine. I made a salad using the
oil, which turned me on again to June’s idea.”
Hatfield began researching the
health benefits of pecan oil, and continued his personal experimenting
in the kitchen.
“I used it for braising
chicken breasts, then used it as a substitute for butter in a steak
sauce,” he said. “The pecan oil was tasty for basting without
overpowering the flavor, wasn’t greasy, and didn’t burn or smoke in the
pan because of its high smoke point of 470 degrees.”
“And, my research showed that
the health aspects are tremendous with only seven percent saturated
fat,” he added. “It is truly heart healthy cooking, and can be used as a
butter substitute when cooking. Instead of using an entire stick of
butter, you can use the pecan oil and just a bit of butter to give you
the butter flavor you want.”
“Pecan oil doesn’t overpower
the flavor of the food that you are cooking.”
When Hatfield began to develop
the idea suggested to him six years ago, little did he realize the
arduous task that lay ahead.
“In my search to find more
pecan oil in the United States, I found a very limited supply of very
expensive imported pecan oil,” he said. “I was determined to find more
oil, and to investigate the production process, nutritional qualities,
and marketability of this healthy oil.”
Ultimately, it became
Hatfield’s goal to produce pecan oil at a reasonable price and in
abundant supply. It hasn’t been easy, but that type of challenge has
never stopped him before.
“I suppose the most difficult
part was the learning curve necessary to put a food product on the
market,” he said. “That was a whole new field for me. The FDA
regulations, nutritional information, certified bottlers and oil
extractors were things I knew nothing about, and putting those pieces
together has been quite a job.”
Hatfield attended a food
company seminar at Oklahoma State University that helped him work
through the technical aspects of food development and marketing, and
enabled him to get his product on the market in about nine months.
Hatfield’s unique brand of
pecan oil is far more accessible to the general public than the bottle
his wife Eleanor brought home six years ago.
“The 250-milliliter bottle
that stayed in the refrigerator cost about $35 back then,” he said.
“We’re bottling three sizes, and our 250-milliliter bottle (8.45 ounces)
is only $9.95, the 500 milliliter bottle (17 ounces) is $14.95, while
our 750 milliliter size (25.4 ounces) is $18.95.
“We felt it was important to
make this product accessible dollar-wise.”
Hatfield’s limited
distribution system includes Every Occasion in Winnsboro and Company
Farm Pecans in Baskin, Glover’s Hardware in Rayville, as well as
Thurman’s Food Factory, Tonore’s Wine Cellar, and River City Market in
Ouachita Parish. There will be more outlets in the future.
With our new website –
www.pecanoil.com – now up and running, people from all corners of the
world are able to purchase Hatfield’s pecan oil via the world wide web.
Whether or not they will is
the question, but Hatfield remains optimistic. The idea that began with
a suggestion from an old friend and an even stronger suggestion from a
doctor has now come full circle.
Tommy Hatfield lost weight,
got his cholesterol under control, and discovered a new career after a
lifetime in the hardware and lumber business.
Educating America on the
virtues of pecan oil may turn out to his biggest challenge yet.
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