Recently the sunflower industry has developed new sunflower hybrids that contain a fatty acid constituency that functions very well in industrial frying operations. This oil does not require hydrogenation for most frying mediums, thus there is no trans fatty acid byproduct. Another oil-type sunflower seed market is the birdseed market. This market has developed into a substantial size over the last 10 years. The black oil-type sunflower seed is the preferred food source for many species of wild birds.
Seed is cleaned using conventional cleaning systems and bagged.
Bird feeding is the second most popular hobby among American adults. There are many small businesses that bag and market bird food in the rural sunflower production areas. Insect Pests Insect damage to sunflowers may cause substantial loss and economic hardships come harvest. Insect populations may be influenced by the previous year's populations, winter conditions, and the current years' conditions in the Northern Plains. Without season long monitoring, damaging population levels may go unnoticed in sunflowers.