Once considered a specialty crop in Canada, canola has gone mainstream thanks to recent demand for health-conscious vegetable oil. This vigorous winter annual performs best on well-drained, fertile, silt loam soils. It should not be planted on flood-prone ground or soils that are poorly drained.
Canola pods form first on the lower stem, and gradually pods develop towards the top of the plant. Bottom pods are typically 12 to 18 inches from the ground, with mature plants reaching four to five feet tall. Each canola pod will have several seeds in a single row; pods are somewhat prone to splitting open–or shattering–if harvest is delayed too long. Canola plants are highly branched, which helps the plant compensate for thin stands.
Canola oil is made at a processing facility by crushing the rapeseed. Approximately 42 percent of a seed is oil. What remains is rapeseed meal, a high quality animal feed.
Pioneer began its canola seed operation in 1989. Today, Pioneer has 10 research stations located around the world for canola breeding, focused on increasing harvestable yield, herbicide tolerance, improved agronomic traits, increasing oil content and resistance to Phoma and other major diseases.
Pioneer sells canola in North America, Europe, India and Australia markets.
At a glance...
Canola was originally bred from rapeseed in Canada. The name "canola" comes from "Canadian oil, low acid."
The word "rape" in rapeseed comes from the Latin word "rapum," meaning turnip. Turnip, rutabaga, cabbage, Brussel sprouts, mustard and many other vegetables are related to the two canola varieties commonly grown.
In March 2008, Pioneer opened a new state-of-the art production facility in Alberta to meet the growing demand for its canola hybrids. The facility will increase production by more than 50 percent, and plays a role in Pioneer's business strategy to be the canola market leader by 2012.
Conventional genetic techniques, combined with biotechnology, are utilized to help researchers develop competitive, differentiated canola seed products for all relevant world markets. Product development highlights include:
Hybrid Development – Pioneer continues to put tremendous effort into the development of canola hybrids that help improve customer profitability.
Wide-Area Testing – Canola researchers plant more than 100,000 yield test plots in seven countries every year. Thousands of new crosses are made each year to assure a steady flow of elite products with the packages of traits that fit customer needs.
Herbicide Resistance – Researchers are developing varieties with resistance to herbicides that give customers more cost-effective and efficacious options for weed control.
Disease Resistance – Laboratory and field researchers work together to improve canola's resistance to diseases such as blackleg, Sclerotinia and clubroot. Pioneer field pathologists and molecular biology specialists have made tremendous progress leading to the launch of the first Sclerotinia tolerant and the first clubroot resistant canola hybrids in North America for 2009 planting.
Improving Harvestability & Stress Tolerance – Researchers are developing canola hybrids with improved harvest flexibility and reduced harvest losses with improved tolerance to cold, drought and heat stress.
