Bumper OSR Crop September 15, 2014 12:00 am A bumper European oilseed rape crop is expected to see a 5-year low in imports. The EU is expected to import around 2.6m tonnes of rapeseed in 2014/15, down 21% on the previous year. Strategie Grains has forecast that 23.2 milliontonnes of rapeseed will be produced in the EU this year. However, as plantings for the 2015 harvest get underway, UK growers have reported damage from the cabbage stem flea beetle. The warmer weather has caused the flurry of beetle activity and growers are for the first time having to manage the problem without the use of neonicotinoid seed treatments. Some farmers have reported 20% losses already and are suggesting that a second autumn insecticide spray may be required.
