Crop Production

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service estimated about 2 million planted acres of canola in 2018 with record production of around 3,600 pounds per acre and record national average yield of nearly 1,900 pounds. This accounted for more than 7.2 billion pounds of canola production. Planting of canola in the United States first began in 1988 after being introduced in Canada in 1974. The charts below show dramatic increases in acreage and yield since 1991.

While North Dakota currently grows 85 percent of U.S. canola, states in the Pacific Northwest and Great Plains are increasing acreage. Not only does canola provide high-value canola oil and meal, it benefits other crops like wheat in rotation by breaking up pest and disease cycles as well as provides ideal habitat for pollinators.

To aid farmers growing canola, the USCA offers a production guide and other resources. Regional associations provide field tours, meetings and more.

Global canola/rapeseed production is estimated at 70 million tonnes. (About 97 percent of “rapeseed” grown in Europe is canola quality today.) Thanks to agricultural technologies, yields of canola/rapeseed have improved dramatically since 1961!