A New Side of Flax

A New Side of Flax

Goodrich, North Dakota

Cosmetics. Shar Pei dogs. Goats, whose instinctive response to danger is to pretend to faint. Bison. A log cabin and bunkhouse for hunters and birders. No one can claim that John and Stephanie Stober are shy about trying new business ventures. Some have lasted: they still raise bison and provide lodging. Some of have not—the Shar Pei dogs are gone. Through all their ventures, the Stobers have had their eyes on one primary objective: to generate enough income to continue living on the family farm. This home base, near Goodrich in central North Dakota, has been home to five generations for more than 100 years. Now, they believe they have found a golden idea in a crop they had literally been driving by for years: flax.

John and Stephanie are part of Golden Flax 4U, Inc., a company that buys premium-quality golden flaxseed produced by North Dakota farmers and then contracts locally to have the flaxseed cleaned and packaged. Goodrich transplant Larry Turgeon started the company in 1999, and today, Larry serves as company president. The Stobers are shareholders and distributors; their son Jared also works in the business as a way to help finance his college education at the University of ?North Dakota.

About working with the company, Stephanie says, “It’s rewarding, not only financially, but by seeing how this product is helping people with their health.” In fact, the health attributes of flaxseed are what convinced the Stobers to become involved with Golden Flax 4U, Inc. John says there are three key reasons for the increased popularity of flaxseed as a food: fiber, omega–3 fatty acids, and lignans. Research studies have shown that those substances—all found in flaxseed—are associated with important health benefits, including lower cholesterol and blood pressure levels and reduced pain from arthritis.

The latest data available from the North Dakota Agricultural Statistics Service show that the state’s farmers produced 97% of the flaxseed grown in the United States in 2002. Traditional brown-colored varieties compose much of the flaxseed grown throughout North America—the oil from brown flaxseed has commercial applications in the paint and solvent industries. In contrast, golden flaxseed is a hybrid of common brown varieties and is grown primarily as a food crop.

Flaxseed can be incorporated into people’s diets in a variety of ways, Stephanie says. For ?example, when selling Golden Flax 4U, Inc. at shows and health fairs, she grinds it up and adds it to pineapple juice for samples. She continues, “It doesn’t alter the juice’s taste, although it does impart a slightly thicker texture. Even so, people seldom realize it’s been added to the juice.”

In baking, flaxseed can be an egg substitute: three tablespoons of water mixed with one tablespoon of ground flaxseed replaces one egg. For fat replacement in recipes, one cup of flaxseed equals one-third cup of shortening or butter.

“It’s exciting to sell something grown right here in North Dakota,” Stephanie says. In describing the structure of Golden Flax 4U, Inc., she is quick to point out that it is not a multi-level marketing firm. Rather, the company consists of distributors and dealers. There currently are about 400 Golden Flax 4U, Inc. dealers nationwide selling the product at events such as state fairs and to relatives and friends. Distributors sell to dealers as well as to other wholesale accounts such as grocery stores. These dealers are not obligated to meet any specific sales quotas.

Stephanie says selling Golden Flax 4U, Inc. involves an educational component, as well, because many customers aren’t automatically familiar with this product. But awareness about the benefits of flaxseed is rapidly growing, due in part to medical professionals now recommending flaxseed to ?their patients.

“The business has doubled since we got involved,” says Randy Miller, who is responsible for buying the flaxseed for Golden Flax 4U, Inc. as well as monitoring product quality. After harvest, Randy now receives samples from about 15 to 20 flax producers hoping that their crops will make it into Golden Flax 4U, Inc. packages. He says the company may offer double the market price for top quality flaxseed.

In the spring of 2002, Randy and his wife Deb, who live in nearby Denhoff, started Gold Packaging, which contracts with Golden Flax 4U, Inc. Randy and Deb also raise flax, and much of their flaxseed has met the high standards of Golden Flax 4U, Inc. and has thereby captured the premium ?price the company offers. Selling, packaging, and distributing, the Millers have benefited financially in three ways from their association with the company. Randy concludes, “It’s really been a lifesaver for us.”

Prior to packaging, the golden flaxseed needs to be cleaned. This is the job of Don and Jon Hagen of Denhoff, who built their own seed-cleaning and packaging equipment to meet state health department regulations. Jon says, “We get paid on a per-bushel basis for processing flaxseed coming off the combine so that it meets food-grade standards and is ready for packaging.” The Hagens package Golden Flax 4U, Inc. in half-gallon containers, and their 92-year-old mother Vearl applies the labels.

When asked what their association with Golden Flax 4U, Inc. has meant to them, Jon says, “It’s the equivalent of one off-farm job right here on the farm. The nearest towns with comparable pay would be McClusky or Carrington, but now we don’t have the drive time or the expense of driving.”

Golden Flax 4U, Inc. is also part of a program called Pride of Dakota. Begun in 1985 and directed by the North Dakota Department of Agriculture, Pride of Dakota’s goal is to develop, improve, and expand domestic and foreign markets for North Dakota products. Part of this effort, naturally, is directed at e-commerce, and the Stobers have established a web presence in an online “mall” featuring Pride of Dakota members at Shopnd.com. Now, this growing health food business in Goodrich, North Dakota is part of the global marketplace; Golden Flax 4U, Inc. is really “for you”—and anyone else in the world with an Internet connection.