RAPE SEEDS

Category: Oil Seed

Product Code:RAPE

Overview

Rapeseed oil generally contains a high level of erucic acid, which is mildly toxic to humans in large doses. Traditional and other uses have been for lamp oils, soap making, high-temperature and tenacious high-erucic acid lubricating oils, and plastics manufacturing. With the shift to rapeseed 00 in the European Union, the low erucic acid content of the resulting rapeseed oil and its specific fatty acid composition make it a highly appreciated edible oil. Processing of rapeseed for oil production provides rapeseed animal meal as a by-product. The by-product is a high-protein animal feed. The feed is mostly employed for cattle feeding, but also for hogs and poultry (though less valuable for these). The meal (from rapeseed 00) has a very low content of the glucosinolates responsible for metabolism disruption in cattle and pigs.

Rapeseed is primarily grown for its oil. A big challenge of profitable rapeseed production is the limited use and markets for the meal remaining after oil processing.. In some areas, rapeseed, which contains more than 40 percent oil, becomes more profitable than soybeans, which contain 18 percent oil. Rapeseed is is also beneficial as a cover crop and for annual forage. It provides good soil cover over winter to prevent soil erosion, produces large amounts of biomass, suppresses weeds, and can improve soil tilth with its root system. Rapeseed can also be grazed by livestock during the fall growth period.