Cereal and oilseed rape harvest: final estimates - 2017

7. Oilseed Rape

The majority of Scottish oilseed rape is winter oilseed rape and is mainly exported for biofuels, with a very small amount processed in Scotland for edible oil.

Oilseed Rape Estimates (charts 17 and 18)

Estimated oilseed rape production in 2017 increased by 41 per cent to 144,000 tonnes, above average for the last ten years. This was due to an 11 per cent increase in area, and a 27 per cent increase in yield to 4.2 tonnes per hectare. Production in 2016 had been a record low.

Over the last 20 years, oilseed rape production has fallen. This is in due to the fall in areas grown outweighing general increases in yields achieved. Fluctuations in yield have been more marked in recent years. The average production over the last ten years is three per cent lower than the previous ten years.

Chart 17 – Oilseed Rape: Area, Yield and Production

Chart 18 – Oilseed Rape Year-on-Year Change: Area, Yield and Production