On the basis of the peasant farms association "Pyatydni," located in the Volodymyr-Volynskyi district, a regional seminar on the cultivation of winter and spring rapeseed was held by the company "NPC-Lembke" (Germany), organized by the Volyn branch of the subsidiary enterprise "Raiz-Agroservice." About a hundred seminar participants arrived not only from Volyn but also from Lviv and Rivne oblasts. The head of the "Pyatydni" association, Valerii Dibrova, explained why the farm allocates significant areas (and this year it sowed over 800 hectares) for its crops...

— In our crop structure, wheat occupied 60-70 percent. We brought its yield to 63.6 centners per hectare and could increase it further. But the price that has developed on the market today does not compensate for additional costs. Therefore, we weighed our technological, technical, and personnel capabilities and last year sowed 510 hectares of rapeseed. We obtained a harvest of 4.5, and on some areas 5.5 tonnes per hectare. And this despite the fact that the weather was very unfavorable.

The head of the "Pyatydni" association said that they managed to sell the rapeseed at 1,254 hryvnias per tonne. They received the money immediately. However, due to the lack of elevators in Volyn, the rapeseed had to be shipped as late as December. According to Valerii Dibrova, at least two thousand hryvnias must be invested in growing a hectare of rapeseed to obtain a yield of 5 tonnes. But the net profit amounts to 3.5–4 thousand hryvnias. What other crop today is so profitable?

Furthermore, as specialists claim, in crop rotation rapeseed improves soil fertility, it serves as a phytosanitary agent against root rot, increases nutrient reserves in the soil, and is the best predecessor for cereal crops. Its powerful root system loosens the soil so well that after rapeseed, sowing can be done practically without plowing. Also, growing rapeseed makes it possible to distribute seasonal loads on machinery evenly, since its sowing and harvesting periods do not coincide with other crops. Incidentally, the head of the peasant farms association assured that the machinery used for growing rapeseed is ordinary and was purchased back in the mid-1990s.

Of course, agricultural producers are always interested in how and at what price they will be able to sell the grown products. The director of the Western region of the subsidiary enterprise "Raiz-Agroservice," Petro Korman, called rapeseed a business crop and noted that even with a yield of 2.5–3 tonnes per hectare, the profitability of rapeseed is 200 percent. According to him, this year traders state that the price for rapeseed will be no less than 1,500 hryvnias per tonne. What drives such a price? First of all, the deficit on the world market. After all, despite the fact that 14 million tonnes of rapeseed are grown worldwide annually, demand for it is growing. Because this unique crop is used to produce not only high-quality oil but also biofuel, which is becoming more popular every year. The head of the representative office of the German company "Lembke" in Ukraine, whose hybrids are also used to sow the fields of the "Pyatydni" association, Olaf Haue, said that the demand for rapeseed in Germany amounts to 2.4 million tonnes, while its own production is 2.1 million. Ukraine is fully capable of compensating for the deficit.

Valerii Dibrova, who recently participated in the All-Ukrainian meeting on the development of rapeseed growing, expressed concern that the Ministry of Agrarian Policy is considering the idea of introducing an export duty on rapeseed grain.

- Only 120 thousand tonnes of rapeseed have been produced in Ukraine so far (2 percent of domestic production of this oilseed crop comes from the peasant association "Pyatydni" – author), and they already want to introduce an export duty, – Valerii Hryhorovych is indignant. - This will obviously lead to a collapse in prices on the domestic market by at least 20 percent. Then we will again have to think: is it worth it or not to engage in rapeseed.

For now, rapeseed in Ukraine is regarded as a promising crop. The hybrids of the "Lembke" company, which has existed for over a hundred years and is a pioneer in rapeseed breeding, adapt well here and produce high yields. It entered the Ukrainian market through the holding company "Raiz" and managed to win the favor of clients, primarily with high-quality seeds. Rapeseed from the "Lembke" company is resistant to diseases, lodging, and tolerates winter well.

But the most interesting thing was to visit the fields of the peasant association "Pyatydni" and see for oneself that rapeseed is indeed a unique crop that feels quite well on our soils. In Volyn, such hybrids as Artus, NPC 9800, Kronos, and others have taken root well. The head of the "Pyatydni" association advised all colleagues to seriously engage in rapeseed growing.

In the end, while talking with the seminar participants, I became convinced that there is no shortage of those willing to grow rapeseed here and that opportunities for this exist. It would only help to have our own elevators in Volyn (in Ternopil oblast alone, as many as 16 elevators are operating today). They say that a biofuel production plant is soon planned to be built in Ukraine. So hurry to occupy your niche in rapeseed growing.

Olena DUDKEVYCH