Coleman Agriculture in Oregon: History, What It Raises, How It Makes Money and How to Contact It
Profile updated November 2026
Coleman Agriculture is a multi-generation family farm company based at St. Paul in Oregon's North Willamette Valley, and a 2022 announcement calls it the largest hop producer in Oregon. Its growers trace the family's farming to an Oregon Trail arrival in 1847, and the company grows hops, hazelnuts, seed crops and vegetables across several farms.
| Location | St. Paul, Marion County, Oregon (North Willamette Valley) |
|---|---|
| Founded | Family arrived in 1847; Coleman Agriculture, Inc. formed in 2014 (Wilco profile) |
| Sectors | Hops; hazelnuts; grass and other seed crops; vegetables; wine grapes |
| Scale | Sources differ by year: more than 2,000 acres of hops (Yakima Chief page); over 6,500 acres of hops, hazelnuts, seed and vegetables (2022 release) |
| Why it is notable | Described as Oregon's largest hop producer; Bill Coleman received the 2022 International Order of the Hop |
| Ownership | Coleman family, seventh generation per Yakima Chief; ownership board with a non-family president |
| Official website | Coleman Agriculture official site |
History of Coleman Agriculture
Wilco Farm Stores' member profile says the family's ancestors settled at St. Paul more than 150 years ago, and a Cascade Employers profile dates the arrival to 1847, when James and Frances Coleman reached the St. Paul Mission by way of the Oregon Trail. The Wilco profile adds that Robert and Martha Coleman bought a farm with some hops in 1935, and that in the late 1960s brothers Bill, John and Bobby expanded the land base.
The company grew in steps. The family bought the Alluvial Hop Farm near Independence in 2004, formed Coleman Agriculture, Inc. in 2014 and bought an ownership share in the grower-owned hop broker Yakima Chief in 2019, according to Wilco. In 2022 the International Hop Congress honored Bill Coleman with the International Order of the Hop, an award reported by Beer Buzz as given to only a select few every other year.
What Coleman Agriculture Grows and Raises
Hops are the headline crop. Cascade Employers reports more than 2 million pounds a year from 22 varieties, and the Wilco profile says the company sells directly to brewers for fresh-hop beers as well as to brokers. The same profile lists hazelnuts grown for more than 50 years, grass seed since the mid-1980s with a seed cleaner built in 2006, clover, pumpkin and garlic seed, vegetables for canneries since the 1960s and corn silage for a neighboring dairy.
Cascade Employers says the family partners with Salmon Safe, Oregon State University and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and rotates seed crops and vegetables to support soil health. Coverage in 2022 also reports Coleman planting wine grapes, and Wilco says about 30 acres of Pinot Noir were planted, a new line beyond the traditional crops.
How Coleman Agriculture Makes Money
Hops sold to brokers and brewers
The company sells hops through broker channels and directly to brewers, and its Yakima Chief ownership share ties it to a grower-owned marketing channel. Selling fresh hops to brewers adds a relationship channel beside contracts.
Hazelnuts and seed crops
Hazelnut orchards, grass seed and specialty seed crops such as clover and garlic seed give the farm products that harvest at different times and respond to different markets, and the on-farm seed cleaner keeps a processing step in house.
Vegetables, feed and new crops
Vegetables for canneries and corn silage for a neighboring dairy use rotation acres, and wine grapes are a newer addition that reaches a different buyer base.
Farm Insight: What Other Operators Can Learn from Coleman Agriculture
Diversify across crops that do not peak together. Hops, nuts, seed and vegetables spread labor, equipment and market risk through the year, and the rotation also helps soil.
Own a piece of the marketing chain. The family's stake in Yakima Chief and its direct brewer sales show how a grower can capture more of the value after harvest, and its ownership board with a non-family president shows one way a large family business can stay together.
A farm that has gone from the Oregon Trail to hop kilns to wine grapes has earned the right to say it has seen every trend twice, and the Willamette Valley hums with the sound of fresh-hop harvest each fall. If you like farm satire with a good head on it, farm.FM serves farm humor, ranch humor and farm jokes that pair well with a Coleman hop harvest beer.
farm.FM, the nation's first satirical farm site, also runs Tractor Tunes, a country music lineup for farmers. For a sample of the writing, try the archive of one of its staff humorists.
How to Contact Coleman Agriculture
Website: https://www.colemanag.com/
Address, phone and email were not printed in the sources found, November 2026. Use the company website for current contact details.
Coleman Agriculture Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Coleman Agriculture - Operation's own website
- Yakima Chief grower page - Grower profile with family and acreage
- Beer Buzz: Order of the Hop - Independent coverage of the 2022 award
- Oregon Department of Agriculture: About Oregon Agriculture - State agriculture department overview of Oregon commodities
- USDA NASS Census of Agriculture - Federal farm census data by state and county
Coleman Agriculture FAQ
Where is Coleman Agriculture?
At St. Paul in the North Willamette Valley of Oregon.
What does Coleman Agriculture grow?
Hops, hazelnuts, grass and other seed crops, vegetables and, more recently, wine grapes.
How big is it?
Published figures differ by source and year: Yakima Chief lists more than 2,000 hop acres and a 2022 release cites over 6,500 acres across crops.
Who owns it?
The Coleman family, with an ownership board and a non-family president.
Coleman Agriculture shows how a family can keep a Willamette Valley hop farm growing for generations by diversifying and owning part of the marketing chain. Read the Oregon farms guide for the climate, water, markets and programs that shape operations like this one.