1. Canola quality issues and future R&D focus Don McCaffery Technical Specialist NSW DPI Orange Presentation title – Presenter name(s) – Division – Date

2. Canola oil quality challenges  Seasonal variability –Spring moisture stress and/or heat during podfill Yield, oil % –Weather damage 2010 – wet harvest – low test weights 2013 – frost

3. Ave. state oil% 2009-2013

4. Grower objectives  Weed control  Yield  Rotation & system fit –root & crown disease control –maturity for operational & harvest efficiency  Oil content - only quality parameter paid for –no payment for protein –oil inverse relationship with protein

5. Australian Quality 20 Year Trend

6. Yield vs oil in profitability  @ 2.0 t/ha @ 42% oil @ $500 t/ha = $1,000/ha gross  Increase yield by 5% (no extra oil) = $1,050/ha  Increase oil by say 3% (no extra yield) = $1,023/ha  5% yield is a lot easier to achieve than 3% oil  Highest oil lines currently are RR –Standard and high oleic specialty types

7. National Variety Trial 2013 Example

8. Nitrogen effects on yield and oil  Single most important nutrient in canola productivity

9. Specialty – high oleic/low linolenic  Market driven  3 crushers, 2 seed companies –MONOLA and Victory lines  Demand ?..... Growing –Currently 5-6%  Quality (fatty acid content) apparently stable across environments  2013 tests on NVT line –Oleic acid content Bellata 66.5%; Condo 67.3%; Lockhart 66.9%

10. Recent and future research  Targeting yield, not specifically targeting oil content or quality parameters  Agronomy/VSAP projects –Quality data collected on a range of agronomic experimental treatments –Variety-hybrid, sowing time, plant population, crop nutrition (mostly N), row spacing  National Variety Trial data since 2005

11. New canola physiology-agronomy project 2015-2019  Across 3 states – NSW, Vic and SA (similar in WA)  Physiology/modelling and tactical agronomy trials –5-6 sites in NSW + phenology –Assessing early sowing to maximise yield and oil  Harvest management (northern NSW only) –Pattern of yield and oil formation –Plant population, hybrid vs OP, windrow vs direct head

12. Questions