BOWDOINHAM -- It takes time -- and some muscle -- to make a batch of Living Nutz spicy onion-garlic pistachios.

On Wednesday, Neil Vanston poured the flavoring into enormous bowls filled with nuts that had been soaked in water overnight. He and David Dunn worked the thick batter-like mixture into the nuts with wooden spoons. The nuts then went on trays and into dehydrators where they would stay for five days before being packaged.

The company, founded by brothers Seth and Davy Pruzansky, moves a couple of thousand pounds of nuts through production this way each week. There are no conveyor belts or giant industrial mixers in this industrial kitchen. Aside from a few food processors for mixing flavorings, the seven-day process is done by hand.

"It's like a craft," said Seth, who uses the name Seth Leaf -- his middle name -- for business.

The brothers, who are in their early 30s, started selling their organic raw nut products in 2001. They've found a niche within health and natural food stores where customers would be interested in products for a raw living foods diet.

The movement believes that temperatures as low as 116 degrees destroy beneficial enzymes in food and diminishes nutritional value. Germinating seeds and nuts through soaking is believed to disarm enzyme inhibitors, remove toxins and make the food easier to digest.

The business has grown from having its products in one store to about 600 stores in the United States and Canada. Seth is more eager to pursue growth and Davy is more cautious in his approach, but the brothers agree that they would like to get a larger facility, additional equipment and more employees to get into more locations.

Temperament help divvy up the brothers' job duties. Seth, the elder brother is gregarious and described by Davy as the bigger risk-taker. He is in charge of sales, marketing and customer relations. Davy, with his passion for food and a personality described by his brother as inward, is the former company chef who now oversees production and is involved to some degree in all aspects of the business.

In addition to the brothers, five employees now work in a ranch house that is also Davy's home. The shipping area shares space with a TV and exercise ball in the living room, and DHL trucks back up to the front door. The office and a room full of packaged product are down the hall. The industrial kitchen is in the basement, where dehydrators line walls and shelves are loaded with ingredients like raw soy sauce, Himalayan sea salt and pumpkin seeds.

Living Nutz probably will decide how it will pursue its next phase of growth in the next six to 12 months, after additional research and discussion within the company, Davy said.

The possibilities include building on the current property and relocating, possibly somewhere closer to Portland. The brothers have also considered leaving Maine for somewhere they feel is more small-business-friendly, as well as warmer -- a plus that would allow them to sun-dry their products and cut electricity use.

Both brothers believe expansion will help them keep ahead of competitors in an increasingly crowded market for organic snack foods. The offerings were slim -- crackers and cookies mostly -- when the business started, but Seth estimates there are now at least 100 companies selling organic snacks.

"We want to stay ahead of the curve," he said. "The curve is definitely wanting to catch up."

Organic foods are the fastest growing segment in the food business. The U.S. market is worth about $16 billion and has seen double-digit growth in recent years, according to Gary Karp, executive vice president of Technomic, a food industry research firm based in Chicago. "We have every reason to believe the momentum will continue," Karp said.

The list of organic products offered by Whole Foods Market is growing in each sector, whether it's produce, dairy, meat or snack foods, said Barbara Gulino, marketing team leader of the Portland store. She said the store has had strong interest from customers looking for specialized diets including raw, gluten-free, low sodium and sugar-free.

Gulino believes customers who buy Living Nutz like its local identity, the raw nature of the product and attractive, convenient packaging. She believes the brothers' in-store product demonstrations also has helped.

"They're great. They have a story. They engage a customer, they're not afraid to talk to the customer," she said. "It makes a huge difference." Davy believes that expanding the company could help Living Nutz appeal to a larger audience. Increased production would mean the company might be able to save on ingredients by buying them in greater quantities and therefore be able to bring down the price of the product, he said. Each four-ounce package sells for $6 to $8, depending on the flavor, on the company's Web site, www.livingnutz.com. Retail prices may be higher in stores.

Living Nutz has its roots in another family business, Maine IntelliHemp Co. The brothers and their parents, Stephanie and Howard Pruzansky, back-to-the-landers who left New York to live in Maine, made lip balms and other body products with hemp oil.

The brothers decided to pursue food products because of Davy's love of food and their mutual interest in healthy lifestyles. They first tried a breakfast cereal with about 15 ingredients that turned out to be time-consuming and complicated to make.

The nuts came later after Davy applied some of his sauces to almonds. Although their products also now include pecans, walnuts and pistachios, the pair are still known in health food circles as The Almond Brothers.

The nut business has not been without its challenges. There was the spring that the basement flooded and the time the walls and floor were stained with juice during the dehydration of 2,000 pounds of blueberries. And last year, new rules required pasteurization of U.S. almonds through fumigation with propylene oxide or high-heat methods - neither of which was in line with the company's philosophy. Living Nutz now imports its almonds from Europe.

These days, Davy and Seth are reveling in the anticipation of their products reaching a celebrity audience. Living Nutz, whose advertising relies on word-of-mouth and its Web site, was chosen to be among the gift items in the "swag bags" for the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday. They can't help but think of the possibilities -- perhaps a spot on "The Today Show" and stars like George Clooney turning into devoted fans. "These guys are going to be chomping on our nuts," Davy said.