65th Flax Institute Set for March 27-28

The 65th Flax Institute will take place on Thursday and Friday, March 27-28, at the Holiday Inn in Fargo.

North Dakota State University has been the lead university in organizing the biennial Flax Institute.

The aim of the Flax Institute is to bring together national and international researchers with an interest in flax to share and learn about flax research. More than 25 presentations will be given by researchers from Canada, China, Poland, Minnesota and North Dakota.

Exhibits and dinner will provide added learning and networking opportunities.

The topics covered during the event include breeding flax, agricultural production, use of flax in food products, cholesterol-lowering claim for flax, using flax for industrial purposes and human health effects of consuming flax.

A panel will discuss the new uses of flax in food products, as well as the use of flax for animal feeding and other commercial purposes.

Wendy Denmark-Wahnefried will give a keynote address on flaxseed and its potential for cancer control and personalized medicine. Demark-Wahnefried is a professor and Webb Endowed Chair of Nutrition Sciences and the associate director for cancer prevention and control at the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Those interested in scientific presentations and the new developments in flax production and industry are encouraged to attend the institute’s meeting.

There is a registration fee of $125 for the event to cover the breaks, lunch, dinner and scientific proceedings. Registration can be completed online at http://bit.ly/1g2Pwsc or contact Lisa at (701) 231-7122. Preregistration for the event is requested to accommodate for setting seating space and ordering refreshments.

Checking in for the event will start at 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 27, with the program starting at 8:15 a.m. On Friday, March 28, the program will run from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Hans Kandel, NDSU Extension Service broadleaf agronomist and president of the Flax Institute, will ask participants to share information informally about their interest in flax during the dinner on Thursday evening.