History of Linseed
Linseed, also known as flax, has been grown for thousands of years for a variety or purposes.
Fibre from the stems was traditionally used to make fine linen – in the west of England, hundreds of acres in what became known as the Coker triangle were grown to supply strong, reliable sail cloth for the British fleet, including Nelson’s tallship, the Victory … no wonder Napolean didn’t stand a chance!
Oil from the seed traditionally nourished not only people but also their livestock – as well as countless cricket bats! – and, later, industrial uses were found for Linseed oil including Linoleum flooring and as a base for paints.
The seed’s health-giving properties are not a new discovery. It was the wise old Greek physician Hippocrates (460-377BC) – credited with coining the phrase “Let food be your medicine and medicine be your food” – who first understood Linseed’s nutritional power, while the Emperor Charlemagne, who ruled most of Europe in the 5th century, was so convinced of its value that he decreed every subject should eat some every day. Had we continued, it would have saved the NHS a fortune!
