ENRECO Inc. has built a healthy business keeping people healthy.

From its plant in Newton, south of Manitowoc, the company supplies processed flaxseed rich in omega-3 fatty acids, for breads, cereals, pizza crusts and a growing number of food products for humans and animals. Besides its bulk shipments to food manufacturers throughout the United States and 14 foreign countries, ENRECO also sells flax directly to consumers.

The company was founded in 1987 as a spinoff of Natural Ovens of Manitowoc by the late Paul Stitt, founder of Natural Ovens and a pioneer in processing flaxseed. Growth in the use of flaxseed followed Stitt’s development of a proprietary process for stabilizing the grain that extends its shelf life to two years.

Sean Moriarty, 46, current president and CEO of ENRECO, bought the company from Stitt in 2004, and has overseen its rapid growth. Under his leadership, ENRECO has quadrupled revenues, diversified product lines for human and animal nutrition, and vastly expanded the export of its flaxseed. He’s increased the work force from seven to 22 employees. And, while retaining the processing plant in Newton, in 2007, Moriarty moved ENRECO’s headquarters to an office tucked next to a flower shop in Sheboygan Falls.

“We set three types of goals for the company: Process focus, product focus and market focus,” Moriarty says. Among the process achievements have been upgrading of the company’s production facilities, winning certification from the American Institute of Bakers, organic certification and acceptance from major food producers such as Kellogg’s and General Mills.

Products have been diversified for humans, companion animals and as a supplement for poultry feed to produce more nutritious eggs. About 60 percent, by weight, of the company’s shipments are for animal nutrition products and 40 percent for humans, but the revenue breakdown is about 50-50, Moriarty says.

Since 2004, the company also has increased ENRECO’s sales force and expanded exports  to nine European countries as well as Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Israel and Australia. Exports now account for 16 percent of  ENRECO’s business, and Moriarty’s  goal is to make it 25 percent of the total.

Most of ENRECO’S flax comes to Newton by rail in 20-ton shipments each week from December through August from the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. The flax is stored in five huge silos near the plant.

Omega-3 fatty acids are nutrients, also found in fish oil, that clinical data have linked to a reduction of coronary vascular disease risks and symptoms, according to a technical paper by Moriarty. They also have been widely associated with a reduction of cancer risks in animals and humans. The average American’s diet is very deficient in omega-3.

Flaxseed isn’t just a source of omega-3. It also contains far more antioxidants than blueberries, and lignans, a particular type of antioxidant that has been linked to some of the same health effects as omega-3. Flaxseed also contains 20 to 23 percent protein — twice as much as wheat and almost as much as meat, and a higher percentage of dietary fiber than oat bran.

ENRECO supports independent research studying flaxseed’s beneficial effects on prostate and lung cancer and in a weight-loss program.

After 15 years in the insurance business, Moriarty, entered the nutrition field. "We ate healthy and we cooked healthy," he says, and he founded an animal nutrition business that used flax from ENRECO as one of its key ingredients. When Stitt decided to sell or close ENRECO, Moriarty bought the company.

Moriarty attributes his success to "old-fashioned values like hard work and spending a lot of time to hire the right people."

Looking to the future, he sees demand for flax exploding much like interest in soybeans increased several decades ago. One day baked goods will routinely contain two to five percent flaxseed, he says.

That promises to be good for both the health of consumers and the bottom line of ENRECO.

By John Hill

You can contact John Hill by e-mail at jhoythill@sbcglobal.net.

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