Regulatory approval of Pioneer Hi-bred’s high oleic soybeans hasn’t fazed the Canadian canola industry.
“It really doesn’t pose an immediate threat to canola acres out there right now,” said Robert Hunter of the Canola Council of Canada.
On May 11, Pioneer, a DuPont company, received confirmation from Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency that its high oleic soybean trait has been approved for cultivation and for food and feed use in Canada.
Once commercial quantities of the crop are available, it will be competing head-to-head with canola in the rapidly expanding market for trans fat free oils.
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The canola industry doesn’t fear the looming rivalry.
“If you look at where soybeans are grown and where canola is grown, they’re not competing, so I think this provides more opportunities for more farmers in Canada to access these food markets, which is great,” said Hunter.
Pioneer’s high oleic soybean oil is more than three times higher in heart-healthy mono-unsaturated fats and has more than a 20 percent reduction in saturated fat compared to commodity soybean oil.
“We’re seeing strong results in field testing of soybeans with the high oleic trait and strong interest from food companies looking for a new oil product with improved nutritional qualities and performance characteristics,” said Pioneer president Paul Schickler.
Canada and Mexico are the first countries to approve the high oleic soybeans. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration completed its review of the trait earlier this year but it is still under review by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Regulatory submissions are planned or have been completed in key soybean importing countries.
Pioneer will be field testing the trait in its brand Y series soybean varieties in Canada and the United States this growing season. The company hopes it will have Canadian registration of the first commercial varieties in 2010.
Hunter said the market for fry oils in the United States is about 3.6 billion kilograms per year. Healthier products, like low linolenic soybean oil, high oleic canola oil and sunflower oil, are meeting about 40 to 50 percent of that demand.
“There is still a huge amount of market opportunity out there just within the food service sector. That doesn’t include packaged goods or other areas,” he said.
The canola industry feels it has a leg up on the soybean industry because customers have been using high oleic canola oil for years and are confident they will have a reliable supply. Hunter estimated that 15 to 20 percent of Canada’s canola crop is seeded to high oleic varieties.
“The fact that we have some track record and history behind us of growing this market and having a consistent supply of high oleic really does offer an advantage,” he said.
Hunter hasn’t seen any U.S. seeding projections for high oleic varieties but with an estimated 76 million acres of the crop going in the ground this year, any percentage will result in a significant volume of healthy oil to meet the demand for trans fat free product.
