European rapeseed crush volumes increased by 112,000t on the month in January. Soybean and sunflower seed crushing fell by 73,000t and 80,000t respectively, as EU and UK crushers took advantage of steady Australian canola imports.
- Rapeseed crushing rose by 7pc, mostly due to a strong start in Australia's canola export season, with much of the supply heading to Europe. Higher-than-average exports can be attributed to a large harvest, strong European demand and increased port capacity.
- High soybean oil prices helped make rapeseed oil more attractive in January. Soybean crushing fell by 5pc on the month, with high prices after the US issued guidance on the 45Z production tax credit to allow US low-carbon fuel producers to immediately start claiming credits, supporting demand for US soybeans and soybean oil. Month 1 CBOT soybeans futures reached a six-month high on 21 January, and month 1 CBOT soybean oil reached a two month high on January 17.
- Sunflower seeds made up just 13pc of total crushed oilseeds in the EU and the UK, down from a 2024 average of 16pc and a six-month low. Crush volumes fell significantly on the month and the year, by 16pc and 26pc respectively. Many Ukrainian sunflower crushing plants remained idle or operated at reduced rates in January, with lower demand for sunflower oil pressuring crush margins.
| EU-27 + UK crushing volumes | 1,000t | ||||
| January | December | % m-o-m change | Jan-24 | % y-o-y change | |
| Soybean | 1,270 | 1,343 | -5.4% | 1,170 | 8.5% |
| Sunflower seed | 434 | 514 | -15.6% | 589 | -26.3% |
| Rapeseed | 1,656 | 1,544 | 7.3% | 1,680 | -1.4% |
| Semi-refined | 335 | 332 | 0.9% | 356 | -5.9% |
| Fully-refined | 580 | 547 | 6.0% | 613 | -5.4% |
| Total | |||||
| Total oilseed | 3,360 | 3,401 | -1.2% | 3,439 | -2.3% |
| Total refined | 914 | 878 | 4.1% | 969 | -5.7% |
| Fediol | |||||
