Durable linseed oil penetrates wood better and is flexible in use

 Of interest to purchasing organizations looking to become more sustainable

100 years ago, linseed oil was the binder for paint until petroleum largely took over this function. However, new is not always better, knows RIGO Verffabriek, which uses linseed oil for TOPLIN Linseed Oil Stand Paint and ROYL Oil. Thanks to the company, oil flax has returned to the Dutch landscape, partially meeting the market's need for its own linseed oil.

"We are one of the few paint factories that produce linseed oil paint," says director of operations Henriëtte van Westerhoven - Beaujon. "Sustainability is a motive. Fossil oil creates additional CO2 emissions and runs out at some point. Linseed oil, on the other hand, can be sown and harvested year after year." Using linseed oil also has other advantages, according to Van Westerhoven. "Paint with linseed oil as a binder stays flexible longer and penetrates the wood better. Not for nothing do we find hundreds of years old intact layers of linseed oil paint in monumental work."

RIGO Paint Factory has been producing modern linseed oil paints since the 1970s. "At first we imported these entirely from Canada. In the Netherlands, however, oil flax used to be grown and 'beaten' into oil by the oil mills at the Zaanse Schans. We wondered aloud if there weren't still farmers who grew oil flax. In 2013, we found a farmer in Friesland who was willing to sow one field for us, yielding 20 liters of linseed oil."

Growing and processing linseed oil domestically

It was a tentative beginning that tasted like more! "Since 2014, RVR Loonbedrijf has been seeding 5 to 6 hectares of fallow land for us around Schiphol Airport. With this, however, we were not there yet. After all, the flax has to be cleaned and pressed. This can be done in two ways, mechanically or with the Zaanse mills on the Zaanse Schans. In the end, we chose the mills, because it's a wonderfully beautiful process and this is how we keep the World Heritage Site going. Per hectare we extract about a thousand liters of oil from the seed. This is 25% of our needs for an entire year." The residual products of the process, linseed cake and flax straw, are used by local farmers.

"We definitely have the ambition to expand further, says Van Westerhoven. "Also because of the rising price, that would be beneficial. Striking oil with mills would only become difficult, because the quantities would become too large. So we have to think about this carefully. What is certain is that we will continue with this! We find that people find us because of our story. Many purchasing organizations are looking for sustainability and therefore come to our oil products."

At Architect@Work Rotterdam, RIGO Paint Factory noticed a lot of interest among architects as well. "We are very happy about this. Paint is usually a closing item and gets little attention. That's a shame. I can imagine that conservation, protection and colors will get more attention now that more and more is being built with wood. Our technical advisors are happy to think about this." 

In the case of listed buildings or re-designation, these consultants work with an app developed in-house by RIGO Paint Factory. "This states exactly which products must be used to meet standards, taking into account the condition of the building and the underlying layers. This makes a complex story manageable for all involved."