Hart AgStrong LLC
Sunflower
Healthy, natural non-GMO High Oleic sunflower oil is produced from oil type sunflower seeds. Sunflower oil is light in taste and appearance and supplies more Vitamin E than any other vegetable oil. It is a combination of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats with low saturated fat levels.
The versatility of this healthy oil is recognized by cooks internationally. Sunflower oil is valued for its light taste, frying performance (high heat)and health benefits.
AgStong contracts acerage for a non-GMO high oleic sunflower oil. Sunflower is shorter season than most crops, so can be planted later or harvested earlier, helping spread out work load. Sunflowers are efficient at extracting water from the soil profile, especially in sandy loam soils, and can often tolerate drier conditions better than other crops.
Sunflowers work well as a full season crop in rotation with corn, soybeans and/or sorghum. As a double crop after wheat, sunflowers are an equally good choice with soybeans for the southeat USA. Our Sunflower oil is also the highest of leading oils in alpha-tocopherol, a form of Vitamin E, a nutrient associated with decreasing heart disease risk and bolstering immune function
Use of the oil from sunflower for cooking first occurred in Russia in the 1800s. Though sunflower is native to the U.S., it was not seen as a vegetable oil source here until the last 50 years, and really only began to be significantly grown for this purpose about 25 years ago. Sunflower is lower in saturated fats than most vegetable oils.
High oleic sunflower oil is very high in oleic (monounsaturated) acid. High oleic sunflower oil is usually defined as having a minimum 80 percent oleic acid.
The oil has a very neutral taste and provides excellent stability without hydrogenation. High oleic sunflower oil offers a trans free oil solution for customers. The oil has many uses including bakery applications, spray coating oils for cereal, crackers and dried fruit; it is used in non-dairy creamers, many types of frying and other uses.
A diet rich in high-oleic-acid sunflower oil favorably alters low density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, and factor VII coagulant activity.