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With the transition to a healthier diet, flax has gained particular popularity among customers.
As you know, this plant has been used for many centuries in various types of industry, but recently it has also begun to be used in nutrition. Flax makes an excellent first cold-pressed oil, which is often used in cooking as a substitute for sunflower oil. Thanks to this popularity, flax production has also risen in the rating of economic attractiveness, and the EU countries are willing to buy such products from other countries.
Ranking of flaxseed oil producers in the EU
The production of flaxseed oil in Europe is assigned to France, Belgium, Italy and Greece – it is from these countries that the main consignments of high-quality crude unrefined oil come from.
At the same time, more and more oil is imported to Europe from Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Russia. According to experts, the countries of Eastern Europe will soon supply up to 54% of the total volume of flaxseed oil to the world market, as well as up to 80% of meal – the fact is that Europe itself is gradually abandoning its own production of these products. For this reason, growing this crop is now especially profitable, given the ever-growing market. According to forecasts, in the 2019/2020 season alone, Ukraine will be able to produce 2.7 million tons of oilseed flax, of which up to 650 thousand tons will be exported only to the EU countries.
Overall, a dozen of EU flaxseed oil producers currently look like this:
- France
- Belgium
- Italy
- Greece
- Netherlands
- Spain
- Slovakia
- Poland
- Latvia
- Lithuania
It should be noted that the largest producers of oilseed flax in the world, according to statistics, remain the United States, Canada and China, however, it is not particularly profitable for European buyers to purchase these products due to the peculiarities of logistics. It is for this reason that the countries closest to the EU come to the fore in the supply of flaxseed oil.
Of course, the EU has its own specific requirements for such products, which relate to the content of certain acids in the finished product. You can familiarize yourself with the documents that regulate these features on the website of the European Federation of Vegetable Oil and Protein Producers.
Flaxseed oil demand in Europe
According to Ukrainian experts, the production of flax for our farmers is now one of the most promising. This crop is convenient for crop rotation, which tolerates drought well, and its profitability can be from 43% to 95% – it all depends on the technologies used and the yield. Every year, the EU needs up to 650 thousand tons of flaxseed oil and seeds of this plant – this directly affects the indicators of Ukrainian exports. So, if in 2013 Ukraine exported only 10.9 thousand tons of seeds and 2.8 thousand tons of oil, then by 2019 these figures increased to 62.3 thousand tons and 11.2 thousand tons, respectively. By the way, at the moment flax has been sown up to 35 thousand hectares of areas within the country, which indicates a good demand for this plant.
Flax helps in lowering blood cholesterol levels, increases vascular elasticity, reduces the risk of heart attacks, strokes and blood clots, and also helps in reducing the unpleasant symptoms of menstruation in women. Flaxseed oil can be used both for making salads and for strengthening hair, nails and improving the condition of the skin and the whole body.