Quality of western Canadian canola 2022

Fatty acid composition

The mean erucic acid (C22:1) content of the 2022 canola crop was below the limit of quantification. Over the last several years, the mean erucic acid content in canola samples graded No. 1 ranged from below the limit of detection to 0.01% (Tables 1 and 3, Figure 14a). These low values are a direct result of breeding efforts by the Canadian canola industry.

In 2022. the mean α-linolenic acid (C18:3) content of No. 1 canola was 8.2%, lower than the 2021 mean (8.6%) and much lower than the 5-year mean (9.2%; Table 1 and Figure 14b). Samples from Saskatchewan had the lowest mean α-linolenic acid content (8.1%). Manitoba samples had a slightly higher α-linolenic acid content (8.3%,) and samples from Alberta-Peace River had the highest average (8.6%; Table 3). This year, location had little effect on the mean α-linolenic acid content, which ranged from 7.3% to 9.0%.

In 2022, the mean oleic acid (C18:1) content of canola samples graded No. 1 was 64.6%, higher than the 2021 mean (64.2%) and the 5-year mean (63.5%; Table 1 and Figure 14c). The lowest mean oleic acid content was found in samples from Manitoba (64.2% in 2022 versus 64.3% in 2021) and the highest mean was from Alberta-Peace River (65.1% in 2022 versus 63.8% in 2021, Table 3).

The total monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) content in 2022 was 65.8% in Manitoba (65.9% in 2021), 66.2% in Saskatchewan (66.0% in 2021) and 66.4% in Alberta-Peace River (65.4% in 2021). The mean for western Canada was 66.0% (66.0% in 2021; Table 3).

In 2022, linoleic acid (C18:2) content (Figure 14d) followed a similar pattern to α-linolenic acid content (Figure 14b) in response to breeding and the hot and dry growing conditions, which are known to reduce the linoleic acid content in canola seeds. This year's mean was the lowest from the last 10 years at 18.1% (Figure 14d).

In 2022, the mean total polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) content was 26.6% in Manitoba (26.9% in 2021), 26.2% in Saskatchewan (26.9% in 2021) and 26.2% in Alberta-Peace River (27.4% in 2021). This resulted in an overall mean of 26.3% for western Canada (27.0% in 2021; Table 1 and Table 3). In canola, PUFA content is directly related to α-linolenic acid (C18:3) and linoleic acid (C18:2) content. After flowering, the hot temperatures in August 2022 combined with drought like conditions, especially in Alberta and Saskatchewan (Figure 5), led directly to a PUFA content in canola that was even lower than in 2021. In 2022, we did not observe a difference in PUFA content between northern and southern areas as temperatures were higher than normal over the entire canola growing region, especially in the Peace River area (Figure 2).

Fatty acid composition (oleic acid, linoleic acid and α-linolenic acid) in the 2022 crop differed from that in 2021. There was a 0.4% increase in oleic acid and a 0.3% and 0.5% decrease in linoleic acid and α-linolenic acid, respectively. As a result, the iodine value, which represents the degree of unsaturation in oil, was lower in 2022 (109.5 units) compared to 2021 (110.9 units) (Table 1). The 2022 iodine value was 2.5 units lower than the 5-year mean of 112.0 units (Table 1). It was the lowest iodine value observed since 2000 (Figure 14e).). For No.1 canola, the mean iodine value in units was 109.8 (110.6 in 2021), 109.3 (110.5 in 2021) and 110.2 (111.7 in 2021) for Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta-Peace River, respectively (Table 3). This year, the iodine value of individual canola samples graded No. 1 ranged from 104.2 to 117.8 units while in 2021 they ranged from 104.5 to 119.1 units. Canola samples graded No. 2 had a slightly higher iodine value, higher linoleic and α-linolenic acid content, and lower oleic acid content than samples of canola No. 1 (Table 3).

The mean saturated fatty acid (SFA) content was 6.9% in 2022, which is higher than the 2021 mean of 6.6% and the 5-year mean of 6.6% (Tables 1 and 3, Figure 14f). Since 2009, the mean SFA content varied from 6.6% to 6.9% (Figure 14f). In 2022, the mean SFA content was 6.9% in samples from both Manitoba and Saskatchewan but lower (6.5%) in Alberta-Peace River samples (Table 3).

The fatty acid composition of the 2022 harvest corresponded well with the fatty acid composition from the August to December 2022 exports compared to last year's shipping season (Table 4). Oleic acid was higher and α-linolenic acid and iodine value were lower when compared to the 2021 to 2022 shipping season.