Spring Canola: Emerging Biofuel Feedstock

— Greg Roth, Grain Crop Management and Joel Hunter, Crawford County Extension

Spring canola is another crop in our Bioenergy Crop Demonstration this year. Spring canola is a widely grown oil seed in North Dakota and the Canadian prairies. Spring canola is a cool season brassica crop that produces an oilseed with approximately 40% oil. Canola was derived from rapeseed through conventional breeding practices that have led to a food grade oilseed with reduced levels of glucosinolates (which contribute to the sharp taste in mustard) and erucic acid (a fatty acid not essential for human growth). In 1985 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) declared canola “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS), leading to a significant growth in consumption of canola oil and production of the crop in this country.

We began working with spring canola in 2007 to develop some basic production recommendations for Pennsylvania and explore the fit in our cropping rotations. Canola is spring seeded at a rate of 5 pounds per acre and managed similarly to oats. Recommended nitrogen rates are about 2 LB. N per bushel and yields are often in the 40-50 bushel/acre range. For a 40-bushel-per-acre crop with optimum P and K levels, the N-P2O5-K2O recommendations would be 80-30-20. A wide range of spring canola varieties are available, from conventional, conventional/Clearfield, and transgenic glyphosate and glufosinate tolerant lines.

Canola markets are limited but are growing with interest in homegrown biofuel feedstocks. Canola is the oilseed of choice for straight vegetable oil (SVO) feedstock for tractors. Our Farm Operations department at Penn State, led by Glen Cauffman and Don Rill, have been conducting a demonstration of SVO tractors and this has led them to increasing their canola production. They have generally been achieving yields of about 50 bushels per acre, or about 100 gallons of canola oil per acre. This year, we have a 40 acre field in production that Don is managing to help supply the feedstock for the tractor study.

Canola has some potential to fit in to rotations as a spring crop substitute for oats or soybeans. With a similar production cost to oats and a grain value of about $7.00+ per bushel, net returns should be competitive with oats plus straw. Canola straw is generally not harvested, so there would be less labor with this crop. Canola production costs are higher than soybean production due to its N requirement and returns are lower, making soybeans often a more profitable crop than canola. Because of its early August harvest, there is more potential for seeding cover crops following canola than full season crops. We currently have a new spring canola factsheet in publication that will have more details. It will be available next month.

To find out more about canola and other renewable and alternative energy subjects, plan on visiting Ag Progress Days on August 17–19 and be sure to visit: “Ask the Expert” — in the College building, “Renewable and Alternative Energy” in the energy tent, and “Biofuels and Biodiesel” in the crops building.