Yes! If you have ever made flax crackers (or anything with flax) and it tasted off (almost fishy) that is a sign that the ground flax has gone rancid and is therefore bad. You can grind the whole flax seeds immediately before use or grind whole flax seeds in large batches (using a high speed blender or coffee grinder) and storing the ground flax seeds in the freezer to keep them fresh. I typically do buy ground flax seeds because I use them so often. I put the bag in the freezer as soon as I get home from the store and they are always fine this way (no fishy taste). TIP: Golden flax seeds typically have a more neutral flavor, so if you don’t want to taste the ground flax at all, you may want to buy golden flaxseeds (which you may have to grind yourself).