Montana Safflower creates value-added product for Montana farmers, consumers

Ag leaders and community members celebrated local agriculture and innovation during the grand opening of Montana Safflower Monday in Great Falls.

Montana Safflower uses Montana-grown safflower to create a new market for a drought-resistant crop for Montana farmers and craft unmatched oil in small batches, cold-pressed for flavor and nutrition.

“Montana farmers are struggling to find a crop to grow that doesn’t lose them money. Safflower can be that crop. Safflower has a deep tap root that can reach nutrients and moisture that has leached below the root zone of other Montana crops. That means safflower can mine the nutrients lost by past crops, allowing growers to cut back a bit on their annual fertilizer bill. Safflower is also harvested later than other crops and is pretty resilient to wind and hail, allowing farmers to spread out their harvest pressure,” Montana Farmers Union President Walter Schweitzer said.

Montana Safflower is the latest business through which Montana Farmers Union has led by example to increase the resiliency of regional food systems, with the grassroots, non-partisan organization as the majority owner in partnership with Ag Processing Solutions owned by Andrew and Jennifer Bishop of Brady.

People might remember Montana Safflower instead as the Oil Barn in Devon.

Initially, the press will continue to process the 1,000 acres a year that it processed under its previous ownership. As growers and customers increase, Bishop said he sees a clear path to processing 10,000 acres within five years and, ultimately, a total of 30,000 acres of safflower from conventional and organic growers each year to reach a scale of 50 tons of safflower processed each day. The oil will be sold both for household use and in bulk.

Montana Safflower’s screw oil press uses more pressure than heat to maintain the integrity of the final oil’s omega 3s. Home cooks and chefs alike seek out the high-oleic, cold-pressed oil that is rich in monounsaturated fats as a healthy option that is more stable than many other cooking oils under high heat.  

“Our goal is to expand the market for Montana Safflower,” Schweitzer said, adding that interested farmers can reach out to him directly at 406-799-3782.  

Learn more about how to be part of something locally grown at montanasafflower.com or by calling 406-799-3782.