By CINDY LADAGE
Illinois Correspondent

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. — In the middle of Rock Island is a unique business called Boetje Foods, Inc. This family business is managed and owned by Will Kropp, and makes the famous Boetje Dutch mustard.

The company began in 1880 when Fred Boetje began making stoneground Dutch mustard in his garage in Rock Island. Today the family still uses the same recipe of water, mustard seed, sugar, salt and distilled vinegar.

“Fred Boetje came to the U.S. from Germany, and he said the food was puny,” Kropp told visitors to his plant on a tour. “Fred Boetje developed Boetje Dutch mustard. He went door to door with a wooden bucket and would fill empty glass jars.”

Boetje made the mustard in his garage sold his product for 5 cents a dipper. The Kropp family are the third owners of Boetje Foods; the second owner was Leon Wernentin. Although at one time the company made a few other products, Boetje Foods focuses its efforts on award-winning coarse mustard.

How is the mustard marketed and produced at this small family business that works with a staff of just four? At first, Kropp said they tried traditional means of sharing the word about their product: “I used to get fan letters for our mustard, so Dad (Robert Kropp) and I made appointments with stores and soon found it was not as easy as we thought.”

Stores wanted to charge an upfront shelving fee and if the product didn’t sell, they would also charge a restocking fee. The family instead made their mustard available in gift boxes and shared it through word of mouth. If a chef would try it, then he or she would request it for their restaurant, or if a customer liked the mustard, they would ask their stores to carry it.

“We went to independent stores, too. It took a long time, but we went from seven states to 28 states that carry our product,” Kropp said.

On just a fluke, he said they decided to enter the 2008 Napa Valley Mustard competition. “We were amazed when we got a call saying, “Congratulations, you won and beat out 400 other entries.’”

This was a big contest, with mustard makers from seven countries, including Canada, France, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden and the United States. But the Napa Valley award is just one.

“We also won the 2002 Fiery Food Challenge, and due to opening our factory for tours, we also won the Quad Cities Convention Hospitality Award in 2008,” Kropp said.

As far as making the mustard, the process actually begins on a Friday. “We start with 1,000 pounds of brown mustard seeds,” he said. “We put it in a potato grinder and dry-grind. This cracks the seed open.”

Next the cracked seed, which is imported from Canada, is placed in a holding tank with the sugar, water, salt and distilled vinegar, which is kept in a wooden holding tank built in the 1920s. The mixture ages over the weekend, then on Monday they stone-grind the mixture. On Tuesday they bottle and package it.

“On Wednesday, we clean up, and on Thursday, do paperwork,” Kropp said.

His son, Jason Turner, said the mustard seed is imported from Canada because “it is hard to find the brown seed in the U.S.”
While Boetje Mustard is busy year-round, summer is its busiest time, with Fourth of July, the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival and other nearby events.

“Come on, summer!” Kropp encouraged the weather, envisioning brightly colored batches of product skipping out the door.
Aprons and t-shirts can be purchased from Boetje. It also sells its  mustard online. For more information, check out www.boetjesmustard.com or write to: Boetje Foods, 2736 12th St., Rock Island, IL 61201.