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| Camelina Debuts in Southern Alberta Camelina, a crop dating back to Neolithic times in southeastern Europe and southwestern Asia is making a debut here in southern Alberta. Ryan Mercer, of Mercer Seeds Ltd. south of Lethbridge, grew a few hundred acres last year and feels this crop has huge potential for dry land farmers. Camelina, although from the same family as mustard and canola, has incredible water use efficiancy and may very well be the most drought tolerant oilseed crop ever grown in western Canada. Also of huge benefit is its strong allelopathic property, making it possible to grow a clean crop without the use of in crop herbicide. Very little fertilizer if any is required if there is at least 30lbs/ac residual N in the soil. Seed size is half that of canola and is around 40% oil, 90% of that being unsaturated. "We are deliverying camelina oil in to the cosmetic, neutricuedical, and vegetable oil market," declares Ryan. "As well as including seed or meal in laying hen rations to produce "omega-3 eggs." "It's very high alpha linolenic acid (omega 3) content (in the 40% range) is similar to flax, however camelina oil contains about 1000mg of tocopherols (vitamin E) per kg, two to three times that of flax or canola," he adds. Tocopherols are an antioxidant, stabilizing and helping prevent the oil from going rancid once crushed. More importantly, antioxidants immobilize free radicals in the blood stream, which alter the functioning of cells causing premature aging, peptic ulcers, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, infertility, live and lung disease, inflammatory and autoimmune disease, and cancer. Ryan formed a company by the name of Camelina Canada and is expecting to begin shipments of seed and oil to cosmetic, oleo-industrial chemical, and bio-diesel manufacturers in the United States and Europe this year. |
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