News

2022 CHS Sunflower premium contracts now available

If you've considered adding sunflowers to your crop rotation, now may be a good time.

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7 Facts about CHS Sunflower

Did you know CHS is a leading global sunflower supplier, providing 50% of all inshell sunflowers consumed in the U.S., and an industry leader in hybrid sunflower seed development?

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CHS Obtains Exclusive Rights to Corteva Confectionary Sunflower Breeding Program

CHS Inc. announced that it has obtained exclusive breeding and distribution rights to the Corteva Agriscience confectionary sunflower and conoil sunflower programs in North America.

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Pasteurization & Roasting Services

Learn why leading food companies choose CHS and its pasteurization and roasting services.

Meet grower Jamie Routledge

Jamie is a second-generation farmer in northern North Dakota. He farms with his wife, Mary, and daughters, Meta and Elsa. They raise sunflowers, wheat, peas, soybeans, corn, canola and durum.

CHS first sunflower processor to offer pasteurization for food safety assurance

A global leader in the confectionary sunflower processing industry, the CHS plant at Fargo, N.D., offers state-of-the-art pasteurizations capabilities for its non-roasted sunflower products. CHS is the first sunflower processor to offer the industry-leading Log5 pasteurization technology. This allows CHS to provide a full line of processing services – oil roasted, dry roasted and pasteurized products – to its food company and ingredients customers.

“Food safety is number one for everyone, including food companies,” says Tom Malecha, CHS senior vice president, Processing and Food Ingredients. “Because we are owned by the farmers that grow our sunflower seeds, we’ve always been able to assure our customers that our products are direct-from-the-farm fresh. Pasteurization brings an important layer of food safety assurance to customers, especially those using a non-roasted product.”



Food recalls have been estimated to be a multi-billion dollar problem in the U.S., according to a May 2016 Fortune magazine article.

The Log5 technology is unique in its ability to enable pasteurization without changing texture, taste or overall sensory characteristics of food products. The three-step process with validated 5 log reduction is fully automated, provides for gentle handling of the product, and requires no post-pasteurization drying.

In addition to pasteurization services, the Fargo facility offers expanded, custom-roasting capabilities for both kernel (oil) and in-shell (dry roasted) sunflowers.