Common Name: Linseed meal, linseed oil meal, linseed oil cake, linseed cake, flaxseed meal, flax meal
Scientific Name: Linum usitatissimum L.
Feed Categories: Oil plants and by-products
Physical Characteristics:
Linseed oil cake is in brown colour and in form of solid small pieces; it also contains 8 to 9 % oil for good softness. It should be preventing from water because water is harmful to maintain its shell life. Linseed oil does have a characteristic odor that some find unpleasant, but it doesn't release harmful fumes like solvents.
Production/availability:
Linseed meal is the by-product of oil production from linseeds (Linum usitatissimum L.). Linseeds are primarily used for the production of linseed oil, which is used in paints and in other industries, such as the manufacture of linoleum. Linseeds and linseed meal have attracted considerable attention since the 1990s due to the presence in the oil of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), notably alpha-linolenic acid (ALA, an omega-3 fatty acid) and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Supplying these fatty acids to the diets of livestock is being used to alter the fatty acid profile of meat, milk and eggs in order to provide health benefits to human consumers. Other benefits include laxative properties and positive effects on the appearance of skin and hair Linseeds and linseed oil contain large amount of lignans, which act in mammalians as phytoestrogens and have anti-carcinogenic properties.