The UK’s 2022-2023 oilseed rape area has been estimated to be around 413,000 hectares, up from 360,00 hectares the previous year, United Oilseeds has said.
The co-operative, consisting of 4,500 growers, said this estimate would mean that the UK would be left some 438,000 tonnes short of self-sufficiency.
Whilst the UK oilseed rape area is increasing, production will 'not be enough' to meet the UK’s annual domestic demand.
United Oilseeds said this had reduced from 1.9 million tonnes in 2021 to 1.8 million tonnes for 2023, owing to the closure of the OSR processing plant in Hull.
Chris Baldwin, managing director of the co-op, said he remained 'very confident' in the future for oilseed rape in the UK.
"With international supplies also hindered by availability and the war in the Ukraine, the outlook for OSR market prices remains bullish.
“There is a pipeline of new varieties coming to market with improved traits and performance characteristics that will appeal to our growers.
"At the same time, UK demand for OSR remains high which means British farmers can grow oilseed rape for a domestic market that will remain buoyant over the next few years.”
It comes after the co-operative announced an 18% rise in pre-tax profits to £1.8m for the trading year ending 30 June 2022, compared to £1.5m profit during the same period the previous year.
United Oilseeds' annual turnover was also up, rising to £174m, from £172m the previous year, whilst its net worth rose 13.17 % to £15m.
Total commodity tonnages traded by the co-op rose by 6.5%, amounting to 421,132 tonnes compared with 395,557 tonnes the previous year.
