What is rapeseed farming and what are its stakes in France?
The role of rapeseed in French agriculture
Rapeseed is an essential crop for food and energy sovereignty in France.
France is the leading European producer of rapeseed: 6.45 Mt of seeds were harvested in France in 2025. Europe is the second-largest global producer, behind Canada. (1)
Rapeseed farming is mainly present in the northern half of metropolitan France: the Northeast, the Center, and Burgundy. It constitutes essential revenue for French farmers. 100,000 French farm businesses produce oilseed and protein crops such as rapeseed.
The environmental benefits of rapeseed farming
Cultivated without irrigation within 3- to 5-year rotations, rapeseed protects soils, absorbs residual nitrates, and constitutes the primary food resource for bees in spring (30 to 40% of French honey, along with sunflower).
The benefits of rapeseed in food
Its primary market outlet is human consumption: its oil nourishes consumers and constitutes the leading oil produced in France. Lesieur, a subsidiary of Avril, markets a rapeseed oil grown and produced in France under the Fleur de Colza brand. Rapeseed oil is rich in omega-3 and vitamin E. ANSES (French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety) points out that the consumption of vegetable oils rich in ALA omega-3 (such as rapeseed oil) should be prioritized. Rapeseed oil also provides omega-6 and 9.
The crushing of rapeseed seeds also produces meal rich in protein (35% on average (2)). This solid fraction, resulting from oil extraction, contributes to livestock feed and constitutes an important alternative to imported soybean meal. The company Sanders, a subsidiary of Avril, for example, value-adds this co-product in animal nutrition.
The benefits of rapeseed in energy
Rapeseed oil also enables numerous other applications, the primary one being energy. After esterification, it produces a biofuel with properties similar to those of diesel and compatible with diesel engines. This biodiesel is incorporated into diesel distributed to retail customers in France up to 7% and can be used at 100% by certain captive fleets. This is the business activity of Saipol, a subsidiary of Avril, through its Diester and Oleo100 brands. It presents major advantages in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions linked to transportation. The biodiesels commercialized by Saipol, Oleo100® and Diester®, make it possible to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 60% compared to baseline fossil fuel.
Rapeseed in renewable chemistry
Furthermore, rapeseed finds numerous applications in the chemical industry, notably through glycerin. An activity in which the company Oleon, a subsidiary of Avril, is one of the leaders.
Agriculture, cosmetics, industrial ingredients, lubricants, nutrition, coatings, and detergents are all applications of rapeseed oil chemistry whose environmental impact is significantly lower than that of derivatives derived from fossil petroleum products.
(1) Source: Terres Univia (according to INRAE, AFZ, and Feedbase)
(2) Source: Terres Univia (according to Eurostat and others)