IT WAS once called the Cinderella crop, constantly second to King Wheat and fighting for respect as a newcomer to prairie fields and prairie producers.
Now, canola is the Prince Charming of crops, steadily courting new converts and new markets. This year the crop is on pace to break export records, having already broken crush records, price records and harvest records in 2008.
Two years ago, the Canola Council of Canada set as its goal the production of 15 million tonnes by 2015. “Big, hairy and audacious” was how council members described it.
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They felt confident, having met a previous goal of seven million tonnes by 2007.
It appears the courage to aim high has paid off because two weeks ago council members heard that the 15 million tonne goal might be reached in 2012, three years sooner than expected.
Audacity is but one part of the fairy tale, however. Emphasis on crop research and farmers’ embrace of the results are the basic story line.
It began with crop development by scientists Keith Downey and Baldur Stefanson, who transformed rapeseed into a crop that could produce edible oil.
Further research improved the oil profile and led to development of hybrid and genetically modified varieties popular among growers for their agronomic and economic benefits.
The next chapter saw increased consumer emphasis on foods with low cholesterol and heart-healthy properties. Canola oil supplied part of the answer, with its low saturated fats, impressive amounts of monounsaturated fat and alpha-linolenic acid.
As the negative health effects of trans fats were revealed, high stability, low-linolenic/high oleic canola varieties were developed.
Canola’s success in the health food realm was further enhanced by qualified health claims that it can reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.
Canola’s potential in biodiesel production is yet another chapter in its fairytale history, one that is still being written.
In the meantime, demand for canola and other edible oils is rising steadily worldwide, generally supporting prices. That encourages production and ensures research continues into improved varieties as well as better disease and pest control.
It’s an amazing success story, and one apparently devoid of the ugly stepsisters that plague many other commodity groups – internal battles and fractious member relations. Canola grower groups and councils have been successful in co-operating to achieve their common goals.
Their success is being emulated, or at least replicated, by other groups, most notably the pulse growers, who are developing similar research and promotional programs to support development and marketing of their crops.
What is a fairytale without a few looming threats? For canola, it is the threat of losing market share to soy, the threat of disease as farmers are tempted to shorten rotations, and the need for constant promotion of canola oil’s beneficial properties compared to other edible oils.
In the ever-changing business of agriculture, no crop can lay claim to living happily ever after. But canola remains a golden example of how potential can be reached.
Bruce Dyck, Terry Fries, Barb Glen, D’Arce McMillan and Ken Zacharias collaborate in the writing of Western Producer editorials.
