New sunflower variety may be coming to Canada

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Published: January 29, 1998

A new sunflower variety drawing hype in the United States could soon be available to farmers in Canada.

Nusun produces a new class of sunflower oil that hopes to crack into the snack food market in the U.S. and replace the traditional cottonseed oil used for frying.

With fast food giants like McDonald’s interested, the economic potential is huge, said Ken Swenson, president of the U.S. National Sunflower Association.

“This is great news. Everybody’s talking about it,” he told growers during a seminar at Ag Days held here Jan. 13-15.

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Frito Lay, a major player in the North American snack food industry, has been testing the new oil over the past three years.

Designed for its frying capabilities and longer shelf life, Nusun’s real drawing card is the oil’s low levels of harmful saturated fats. It is being touted for its 20 percent lower level of saturated fats than regular sunflower oil, according to the association.

“That’s what dietitians are looking at so we’re hoping this could take off,” said Swenson, who grew 100 acres last year and has enough seed to plant 450 acres in 1998.

Swenson said there should be 5,000 acres of seed available in the U.S. for the next crop year.

It will be longer coming to Canada, however.

Paul Erickson, general manager for Cargill Oilseed Processors in West Fargo, North Dakota, said with the limited amount of seed, supply will likely be restricted to U.S. producers who have already grown it.

“But there are significant opportunities for both the United States and southern Manitoba for growing over the long term,” he said.

Cargill Hybrid Seeds, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, unveiled its first hybrid in December with a brand name the company is calling Northern Lites.

Erickson said he’s hoping American farmers will be growing five million acres within five years.

“Growers will earn more with this crop than regular sunflowers because there won’t be the transportation costs if we’re selling in our own backyard,” he said, adding producers could expect a 10-15 percent premium.

“We’re restricted right now by seed supply and grower acceptance.”

The U.S. consumes only 10 percent of the sunflower oil it produces. The rest is marketed overseas.

Jim Pederson said there’s a great deal of interest among producers here.

“It’s the bright spot in the United States in sunflowers right now so we’ve heard there might be seed available up here,” said the head of Canada’s national sunflower producer group.

There could be a few acres available for contract next year, but it wouldn’t be covered under crop insurance, he said.

The oil has no linolenic acid in the polyunsaturated portion, which contributes to a longer shelf life and requires no hydrogenation. It tastes the same as traditional sunflower oil, said Swenson.

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