The UK is heading for its second successive increase in the national oilseed rape crop area, but the eventual harvest is still likely to fall short of domestic demand, United Oilseeds managing director Chris Baldwin told the co-operative’s annual trade day at Newbury last week.
The co-operative estimates that UK growers have planted 412,758 hectares of oilseed rape in autumn 2022, compared to 360,000ha in 2021 and the low of 278,000ha in 2000. The 2021 harvest produced 0.89m tonnes of seed and 1.33m tonnes was harvested in 2022. Assuming an average yield of 3.3tonnes/ha, the crop in the ground might be able to produce 1.36m tonnes for harvest 2023.
But, with a domestic crush demand of 1.8m tonnes – even after the loss of the Hull crushing plant from next month – the UK would still be over 0.44m tonnes short in 2023/24 – at a time when the war in Ukraine makes imports less certain.
Analysing seed sales in 2022, United Oilseeds has measured a swing to hybrid varieties. It has estimated national certified seed sales of conventional varieties at 80,850ha, which is a 9.7% decrease from the 89,550 ha planted in autumn 2021. But the 291,490ha of hybrid types represents a 28.59% increase on the 226,670 planted in the previous year. Therefore 2022 certified seeds sales total 372,335ha.
To reach a total plantings figure, the company has added a 40,422ha of farm saved seed, assuming this accounts for 50% of the area planted to conventional varieties, to reach the final total of 412,758ha. United Oilseeds sold sufficient certified seed for 110,00ha – a 31.2% increase year-on-year. Mr Baldwin comments that the business has the right portfolio of varieties to increase its share of the national seed area.
The two most popular varieties for 2022 are both bred by Limagrain – the conventional Acacia with a 40.63% share of the planted area and the hybrid Aurelia with 30.15% of plantings.
By specialist category, the national area planted to high oleic and low linoleic (HOLL) varieties is estimated to be up 18.9% year-on-year to 9,760ha; the High Erucic Acid Rapeseed area by 31.4% to 27,186ha – helped by good premiums and Cargill now owning the Croda crush plant in the UK; and the clubroot resistant variety area by 47.4% to 28, 130ha (with the LSPB variety Crome accounting for 48.55% of the crop area).
The Clearfield herbicide tolerant variety area is 7.9% higher at 29,600ha in autumn 2022, with the DSV-UK variety Matrix taking a 63.24% share of the planted area.
“We have increased our market-leading share of the UK’s oilseed rape crop marketing and grown our share of the UK’s OSR seed market, whilst significantly increasing sales of other break crops such as linseed, oats, pulses and hybrid rye,” says Mr Baldwin. “United Oilseeds has a 30% share of the UK’s oilseed rape market and a similar share of finished crop marketing.
“Market drivers such as the shortfall in the supply of OSR for domestic UK use has helped to support prices which, in turn, encourages more growers to plant rape. However, our impressive seed sales performance is also due to the top varieties we offer to farmers,” he continues.
“I remain very confident in the future for oilseed rape in the UK. There is a pipeline of new varieties coming to market with improved traits and performance characteristics that will appeal to our growers. At the same time, UK demand for OSR remains high which means British farmers can grow oilseed rape for a domestic market that will remain buoyant over the next few years.”