The revitalization of flax in Croatia

Abstract

With the aim of supporting a more intensive use of relatively quickly renewable raw materials for use in various industries and in accordance with the general attitude of greater responsibility towards the environment and the need to protect natural resources, flax fibers, along with other stem fibers, are becoming nowadays again important in the strategy of economic development. The potential of this industrial plant is a positive impact on environment and economy. The production of flax fibers not only meets the requirements of the textile and other industries, but also provides the possibility to create new jobs. SWOT analyisis was used to evaluate the validity and appropriateness of the revitalization of flax. Flax can be ranked among the strategic textile raw materials of Croatia and restoring the production of flax as a raw material for the textile industry (clothing and technical textiles) and other industries (food and medical products) has a solid foundation for the development of flax production in the future.