Canadian canola quality parameters: Comparision of results from harvest and export surveys

Abstract

Canola quality parameters (oil, protein, chlorophyll, glucosinolates, free fatty acids, erucic acid, linolenic acid, and iodine value) from the 1980 to 2004 Grain Research Laboratory harvest surveys and export monitoring programs of western Canadian canola were compared. In the fall of each year, surveys of newly harvested canola provide stakeholders with quality data on the new crop. Throughout the year vessel loadings are sampled and tested for the same parameters and provide information to exporters on the quality of the canola moving out of the country. Over the 25-year period examined harvest surveys were found to be a reliable predictor of the quality of exports for the ensuing shipping season. Production carry over in certain years and the inclusion of dockage in commercial export shipments were likely responsible for differences between harvest survey and export data for some of the parameters.

Introduction

The quality of Canadian canola depends on a variety registration system that encourages the development of cultivars with quality factors demanded by the end-user. Canola quality factors include levels of glucosinolates and erucic acid within the canola specification and acceptable levels of oil content, protein content free fatty acids and chlorophyll in the seed. Variety development is key in maintaining levels of glucosinolates, oil, protein and erucic acid while levels of free fatty acids and chlorophyll are highly dependent on growing conditions.

The ability to export canola of consistent quality is maintained through the grain quality assurance system in which canola shipped from a wide areas is bulked to make up shipments. During the gathering and transportation of canola from the farm to the port, the canola is subjected to grading that segregates the seed into parcels with similar quality according to specifications under the Canada Grain Act. One of the roles of the Canadian Grain Commission's Grain Research Laboratory is to provide technical and analytical information on the quality and composition of canola as it moves through the grain handling system. Some of this information is provided through annual harvest surveys (Canadian Grain Commission, 2005a) (DeClercq, 2004) and from ongoing export monitoring programs (Canadian Grain Commission, 2005b). Harvest survey data would expected to predict the quality of the subsequent export shipments. Factors such as carry over, blending, differences in cleaning and competition for seed between the domestic crushing industry and the export industry may result in differences in results for the two surveys. This study was undertaken to compare data generated by these two different monitoring programs in order to highlight differences and similarities in the two sets of data.