Farmers finding beauty of canola

By Bethany Fuller
Published: April 23, 2010

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The yellow canola flowers carpeting some of the fields in northern Iredell County are about to start turning green — and then brown — to signal that it's time for harvesting.
The lush, colorful landscapes have piqued the curiosity of many in northern Iredell. Farmer Phil McLain said he's even had a few phone calls asking why he planted flowers in his fields this year.
Canola is a fairly new crop in Iredell County, said Iredell County Cooperative Extension Ken Vaughn.
"We didn't have a market for it until the McLains put in their seed oil facility," he said. "We are trying to coordinate with farmers because you have the mill that can be used for feed."
McLain Farms on Snow Creek Road planted 1,200 acres of canola this year, said McLain. He said he and his family planted four times more winter canola this year than they did last year.
The seed oil facility on the McLain farm is currently processing soybeans and canola into mill and oil. McLain said they are trying to develop a bigger market and get other farmers interested.
McLain knows of a few farmers in Iredell, Rowan, Davie and Catawba counties working with the plant.
McLain said canola produces more oil than soybeans. The McLains originally intended to use the oil in the production of biodiesel, but there is a higher value in extracting oil for cooking.
The mill is being sold to farmers for cattle feed, and the oil is sent to Whole Harvest to be refined to a food grade.
"We can offer a better product," McLain said. "Some day, I hope we can offer our own label for oil."
McLain said his family has presented it to potential customers as a good alternative to wheat because if offers a different rotation, and is easier to control. It will also help farmers diversify their offerings, he said.
It's the first year Charles and Brian Pope at Pope Farms in Stony Point have planted canola.
"So far, it's going good," Brian Pope said. "I wanted to try something different."
Pope said his family was looking for an alternative to wheat. He said he plans to sell the canola to McLain Farms for processing.