After 32 years of operation, the Flax Council of Canada has announced that it will be closing its doors.

The organization's office located in Winnipeg will be closed effective January 31, 2018 however the council will continue to operate on a reduced service basis.

Established in 1986, the Flax Council promotes the advancement of Canadian flax and flax products including nutritional and industrial uses in domestic and international markets.

The Flax Council provided the following statement in a news release issued Monday morning:

"Over the course of the past year, the formation of a combined oilseed council was thoroughly discussed at the request of some of our members that contribute significant levy dollars to the Council. Through these discussions, it became apparent that the formation of an oilseed council would not materialize in the foreseeable future. The result of this is a significant loss of funding to the Council, necessitating cost reduction measures."

The Flax Council played a key role in managing the aftermath following the detection of CDC Triffid seed in shipments to the EU, providing financial support to significant testing protocols in an effort to remove Triffid from the seed supply in Canada.

Since 2013, the Flax Council has managed more than $6.2 million in research and market development programs with the support of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Manitoba Agriculture, Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture and both the Saskatchewan Flax Development Commission and Manitoba Flax Growers Association.

The Manitoba Flax Growers Association says will not be affected by the closure of the Flax Council of Canada.