Flax industry ready for record harvest

At the Première Vision Paris trade show, held at the Villepinte exhibition centre on July 2-4, the Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp said that a record harvest is expected this year, after several tough years for flax growers.

A scutching cooperative in the Neubourg region of Normandy, France – MG/FNW

The flax grubbing-up process is about to start in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and the UK, and the industry is forecasting that this year’s harvest could produce an average of 6 to 7 tons of bast per hectare. An output that had not been reached since 2019.

Linen fibre will be extracted from this bast, the inner section of the flax stem. It remains to be seen how much in terms of long fibres, those used for textile production, will be yielded after the scutching stage next autumn. The industry is optimistic, having sounded the alarm last year about the effects of climate change on output, which was halved in 2023.

There is also the possibility of harvesting winter flax, planted in late autumn rather than in spring, with 30,000 hectares devoted to this crop. Land that “produces a slightly lower yield in some regions,” said the Alliance, whose members are currently seeking to identify the best species for these off-season crops.

Crop data is closely monitored by fabric manufacturers and fashion labels. In March, the average price of European Flax fibre (the Alliance’s trademark), calculated across all types and regions, was €9.08 per kg, up 55% over the previous year, having been affected by a poor harvest.

The industry is hoping that the current harvest will generate a larger output at more regular prices. This year, 180,000 hectares of land in Europe were dedicated to flax cultivation, a 20% increase year-on-year, for a total area that is 10% higher than the previous record in 2020.