Newton flax found in many types of food

Owner passionate about touting the health benefits

By: Charlie Mathews, Herald Times Reporter

NEWTON — When Paul and Barbara Stitt owned Natural Ovens Bakery, they constantly preached the benefits of good nutrition.

Sean Moriarty is a true-believing disciple, especially when it comes to the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids found in flaxseed.

"To a large degree, we're standing on Paul Stitt's shoulders … he had the foresight to create ENRECO 21 years ago," said Moriarty, president and chief executive officer of the company with mammoth silos of flaxseed on County U.

He bought the company from the Stitts in 2004, and they subsequently sold Natural Ovens to Alpha Baking Co. last year.

"My primary motivation for being in this business is my personal interest in health and nutrition, and how they can impact and change the way we lead our lives," Moriarty said.

That's a philosophical way of saying Moriarty believes his various products are good for you — and not just people, but horses, dogs, cats and other animals.

"Strong, solid hooves … healthy shiny coat" are the benefits touted on bags of "Horseshine" sold to equine owners nationwide, featuring flax with omega-3, and sold under the Omega Fields brand name.

Under that name, as well as ENRECO, human food-grade bulk flax — in 50-pound bags, 2,000-pound totes, and 50,000-pound truckloads — is sold to baking, pizza crust, breakfast cereal, nutrition bar and other segments of the food and nutritional products industries, as well as direct-to-consumer.

Each week, from December through August, Canadian National railcars bring 20-ton shipments of flaxseed to Newton, mostly from fields in Manitoba and Saskatchewan provinces.

The flax is stored in five silos, including two with 10,000-bushel capacity, two more 35,000-bushel silos, and one silo capable of holding 100,000 bushels.

The flax has already gone through a preliminary cleaning process after field harvest, but the flax goes through ENRECO's proprietary cleaning and stabilization process in Newton.

Its "Sterling Choice" premium flaxseed has a shelf life of more than a year.

A company brochure tells prospective food manufacturing customers that it is available "in brown and gold varieties that provide a rich, earth-grain appearance and texture to foods."

The brochure says its flax is trans-fat free, high in healthy oils and dietary fiber, has more antioxidants than blueberries, features high-quality protein, and is gluten-free with no known allergens.

Or, as the brochure states, ENRECO's flax is "in high demand by food manufacturers as the nutritional and functional benefits of this 'ancient grain' super food is becoming more widely understood."

Growth in revenue, employees

Since taking over the company, Moriarty said the business has grown to 24 employees, from eight, in the Newton production facility, and a sales and marketing office in Sheboygan Falls.

"We've also quadrupled revenue and had significant growth in exports, including shipping to 10 countries," said Moriarty, who left the insurance industry, and was a distributor of nutritional ingredients, with ENRECO a major supplier before his buyout.

ENRECO also works with independent distributors, said Ravin Rajan, vice president of operations to oversees production in Newton.

Rajan said ENRECO's sales outside the U.S. are about 15 percent of total revenue, and that segment is expected to grow substantially.

He manages the distribution of flax into the silos, creation of several varieties of brown, golden, commercial and organic varieties, as well as custom blends.

Rajan also is responsible for making sure staff members are prepared for surprise, drop-in quality and process inspections by any one of five governmental, industry or private agencies.

While Moriarty and Rajan said they are careful to not make any claims their flax can cure, treat or prevent disease. They are seeking to advance knowledge of its properties by providing free product to different universities for studies.

Flax has been supplied for cancer research clinical studies at the University of Massachusetts, prostate cancer studies at Duke University and weight loss-related research at George Washington University.

Moriarty said he intends to stay in the nutritional supplements field for many years.

He said the health benefits of omega-3 are generally accepted, and the body needs to ingest it through either food products or supplements because the body can't create it from another substance.

"So, it is a mainstay ingredient, with two ready sources — plant- or marine-based," Moriarty said. "If you're allergic to fish, or a vegetarian, you can't get it from fish."

That creates the need for flax from Newton, via Canada, "and this is not a nutritional fad," he said.

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