Organic sunflower oil – Here comes the sun!

The sunflower is a true globetrotter. It originally comes from North and Central America. The indigenous peoples of North and Central America cultivated sunflowers as both a useful and ornamental plant as early as 4,500 years ago. The Aztecs even revered the sunflower so much that the priests at the time wore crowns made of the bright yellow flowers. 

Shortly after the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus, sunflowers were brought to Europe by Spanish sailors. However, it was only a few centuries later that Europeans discovered the benefits of this medicinal plant and began cultivating it extensively in the 19th century for oil production. Other typical growing countries are Russia and North and South America. The genus name, "Helianthus," is derived from the Greek words "helios" (sun) and "anthos" (flower). 

Today, the "Sun Flower," as Americans call the bright yellow flower, shapes our landscape in the form of vast sunflower fields and is simply part of the rural summer. In German-speaking popular language, the plant, which can grow up to three meters tall, is also called "God's eye," "Sun crown," or "Sunn star." Sunflowers are very special plants: during their growth phase, they always turn towards the Sun and follow its path. 

Pretty clever: In the part of the plant that is in the shade, a substance called auxin forms, which regulates growth and ensures that this part of the plant grows faster. The result: The sunflower's head "tilts" toward the sun due to the strong, inclined stem and thus follows its path. In the evening, it turns its head back to the east, preparing for the next morning to greet the big yellow source of warmth anew.

Despite its impressive height of up to two meters, the sunflower is an annual plant that blooms between July and September.


The flower heads with their bright yellow petals can reach a diameter of 10 to 35 cm. The sunflower belongs to the Asteraceae family and is the largest in its family.