Summary

Oil crops are the second most important source of energy in food and feed, located just after cereals. They are recognized as a significant source for biofuel production. One of the most productive species in the temperate climate is rapeseed, originating from the cabbage family, which includes more than 100 species and a bunch of varieties. The seeds of the plant commonly provide material for cooking oil production. However, due to the decreasing amount of fossil fuel reserves, the constantly growing life standard level and the intensified goods and energy production, rapeseed begun to be perceived as a valuable material for energy production. The plant is estimated to be significant as a raw material for processing in different branches of industry, especially as an energy carrier for diesel engines. The wide-scale production of rapeseed is however strongly dependent on the plantation management costs, the organization of local sources, the use and the adaptation of technological aspects of trade, drying and storage.

In Europe, rapeseed is being grown on more than 3 million hectares, which stands for more than 60% of the area covered by oil crops. Among the oil crops of the world, rapeseed is almost the most widely grown, just after soy species. Under Polish conditions winter rapeseed is being planted on 97% of the area dedicated for oil crops, and during the last years the annual area of production reached 450 thousand hectares on the average.

More than 80% of the world's rapeseed production is provided by the EU-27, China, Canada and India. EU-27 that is the world's leader in rapeseed production, is estimated to have the fourth biggest area of rapeseed plantations in the world (5 million hectares on the average from 2003 to 2007). The highest yield of rapeseed can also be found in EU-27. In the "old" member countries of the EU yields exceed 3tonnes/hectare, while in the new member states it equals 2 tonnes or more per hectare. There are two main varieties of rapeseed: summer and winter rapeseed. As the winter rapeseed is more commonly used, this report will focus on this variety.

Full document