This year, Safflower Technologies International, LLC (STI) will be conducting a local safflower refinery feasibility study. This study will determine whether or not an area safflower refinery would be profitable in the McKenzie County area. The McKenzie County Job Development Authority (JDA) and the McKenzie County Commissioners have both granted $8,000 each in funds to financially support the study.
The McKenzie County JDA fosters primary sector economic growth for McKenzie County They expressed that if the study proves a refinery to be feasible, the refinery would diversify McKenzie County's economy and add value to crops grown by area producers.
"In this study, we will be researching how much it will cost for a safflower refinery by looking at how much it would cost per pound to refine the product, which would determine whether or not it would be cost-effective," said Dr. Jerald Bergman, co-owner of STI.
Bergman explained that they would be starting the study soon, and they hope to complete the study over a period of four months. "The refinery would be significant to this area because it would assure that we could grow more safflower for a bigger market," stated Bergman. The refinery's proposed site would be in western McKenzie County, specifically in East Fairview, North Dakota.
STI has previously completed a feasibility study for a cold-press processing plant for safflower and other oil crops, but the next step is conducting this safflower refinery feasibility study. "We did a feasibility study on a cold press plant where we extracted the crude oil from the seed and filtered it, and that process proved to be feasible. But based on last year with all the rain and sprout damage, none of the seeds would have made the oil standard because of the dark color and the free fatty acid content. The germination had started, and it broke down the oil to free fatty acid, and that can't be over 0.5% to meet the oil standard. So we are considering a refinery which would filter and distill to get rid of the odor, color, and the free fatty acid - that way we would be able to have a product every year - even if the weather was bad during the seed ripening and seed development period," explained Bergman.
STI has over 30 years of safflower plant breeding, research, and production experience. Their identity-preserved safflower products include NutraSaff™ (Golden Safflower) and White Hybrid Safflower (Jumbo Size) birdseed, edible oils, livestock feed and supplements, bio-fuels, and bio-lubricants.
STI offers a high oleic and low saturate safflower oil, called Healthola, developed in the USA by Dr. Bergman and released by Montana State University. This natural/non-GMO oil contains 0% trans fatty acid, low total saturates (6%), and contains higher oleic fatty acid (up to 85%) than any other olive, canola, or safflower oils.
STI product attributes offer consumers a virtually flavorless and colorless oil of the highest quality and consistency, surpassing other vegetable oils. STI offers high linoleic safflower oil that is excellent oil for cosmetics,
non-yellowing paints and varnishes, in the manufacture of CLA. STI believes that because of safflower oil's unmatched health benefit qualities, there is an excellent opportunity for safflower oil to be used in cooking oil, infant food, snack food, spray food coatings, cosmetic, pharmaceuticals, and nutritional supplement markets- which would make a safflower refinery a great addition to McKenzie County.
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