Tropical canola hybrids to be developed in Brazil

Embrapa Agroenergia (DF) and the company Advanta Seeds have just signed a partnership to develop the first tropical canola hybrids adapted to Brazil's environmental conditions. The initiative has the potential to change the crop scenario in the country, opening up new opportunities for rural producers, especially in the second harvest, and should help meet the growing demand for vegetable oil and biofuels. The partnership launched the BRSCanola project, which aims to develop hybrid cultivars with high agronomic performance, with disease resistance, herbicide tolerance and adaptation to the climate and tropical soils of the Center-South region of the country.

Canola, a plant from the cruciferous family, like cabbage and kale, of the Brassica genus, is already growing in Brazil, especially in the South of the country. However, they use seeds that come mainly from Australia. The project will last two years and combines the results of two ongoing projects also focused on sustainable canola production in Brazil. “These are efforts in Research and Development and Innovation that complement each other to improve and consolidate the canola production chain in Brazil for the production of biofuels,” highlights Embrapa researcher Bruno Laviola, who coordinates BRSCanola.

Laviola says that canola plays a strategic role in crop diversification and sustainable vegetable oil production in Brazil. “With this partnership, we will combine Embrapa’s accumulated knowledge in genetic improvement for the Cerrado with Advanta’s global expertise with its elite lines, to generate hybrid cultivars adapted to our tropical environment,” says the scientist.

He believes there is ample room for productivity gains and reduced dependence on imported seeds, since there are currently no commercial canola cultivars developed in Brazil. All are imported from other countries, mainly Australia. Furthermore, by tropicalizing canola, the crop is adapted to the conditions imposed by climate change, resulting in materials that are more tolerant to high temperatures and water deficits.

Crossing of Brazilian and Australian lines

For this reason, the project is based on the crossing of lines developed by Embrapa with those of Advanta originating in Australia. Dozens of hybrid combinations will be generated and evaluated, with field and greenhouse tests, including assessments of tolerance to water stress, grain quality and resistance to the main diseases of the crop, such as blackleg, white mold and Alternaria leaf spot. Advanta participates by supplying genetic materials developed over 40 years of traditional genetic improvement.

The project is a pioneering initiative for the Brazilian market, given that the lack of hybrids adapted to tropical conditions has been one of the main barriers to the expansion of the crop and, especially, to increasing average grain productivity. For Ana Luiza Scavone de Camargo, leader of New Business Development in the Americas at Advanta, this partnership is a valuable opportunity that uses the best of the scientific knowledge that exists between the two institutions. “This will allow us to accelerate the development of more resilient and productive genetic materials, which are essential for the advancement of the production chain,” predicts the executive. The partnership also includes the Arthur Bernardes Foundation (Funarbe) for administrative and financial support for the execution of the activities.

Brazil's agroenergy potential

“We believe that the development of tropical canola hybrids could position Brazil as a leading player in the global bioeconomy. We are promoting applied science with a focus on concrete results for producers, the food sector and the biofuels market,” concludes Laviola.

The area planted with canola in Brazil reached 40 thousand hectares in 2021, jumping to 250 thousand ha in 2024. The outlook is to reach around 350 thousand ha in 2026. With public policies focused on the production and adoption of biofuels in the country, with emphasis on Biodiesel, SAF and Renewable Diesel, this production needs technical improvement to increase productivity in addition to increasing the cultivated area. Consolidating a sustainable production system for canola.

Potential for expansion in the second harvest

Canola has been consolidating itself as a strategic option for crop rotation in the second harvest, especially in the Cerrado regions, where there is a growing demand for alternatives to second-crop corn. With a relatively short cycle, good adaptation to mild temperatures and the ability to add value to the production system, canola can be grown right after the soybean harvest, optimizing land use and promoting sustainability in the agricultural system.

“Cultivating canola as a second crop can become a vector of transformation for Brazilian agribusiness. We are talking about a crop that improves soil structure, breaks pest and disease cycles and also generates grains with high value for the food and biofuel industries,” emphasizes Laviola (photo on the left).

In Brazil, canola has the potential to occupy up to 20% of the second crop area cultivated with soybeans, which makes it possible to expand its production without the need to incorporate new areas into agriculture. This is a differential for the country.

Studies conducted by Embrapa Agroenergia indicate that areas currently underutilized during the fall/winter in the Center-West, Southeast and South of Brazil have great potential for canola cultivation. The expectation is that, with the supply of more productive and adapted tropical hybrids, the area planted in the country may grow significantly in the coming years, expanding and diversifying the supply of vegetable oil for the production of Biodiesel, Renewable Diesel and SAF (acronym in English for sustainable aviation fuel).

Integrated projects

In the SAFCanola project, aimed at using the species as a raw material for sustainable aviation fuel, lines adapted to the tropical climate were selected, with productivity similar to commercial hybrids. The ten most productive lines identified in this study served as a basis for the start of testing in the BRSCanola project.

When canola is grown during the fall/winter in the southern region of Brazil, water is generally available throughout almost the entire crop cycle. On the other hand, in the Cerrado, where canola is used as a second crop alternative, water availability is generally limited to the first half of the cycle, posing challenges to the adaptation of production systems. To overcome this limitation, strategies have been developed in the SAFCanola project that involve the optimization of nitrogen fertilization, associated with the use of bioinputs based on microorganisms with specific functionalities, such as mitigating water stress and promoting biological nitrogen fixation. These experiments also aim to develop more sustainable production systems, with lower carbon emissions.

RedeCanola - Development of the canola production chain in tropical regions: cultivars, cultivation systems, climate risk zoning and sustainability, a third project with the variety, also led by Laviola, seeks to transform data into knowledge. The project aims to develop the canola production chain in tropical regions with a focus on the validation of cultivars, cultivation systems, agricultural management, agricultural climate risk zoning and sustainability metrics.

The project carried out tests at a Technological Reference Unit (URTs) in Mato Grosso, evaluating management systems for canola cultivation in tropical regions; plant life cycle in commercial plantations; economic-social-environmental impact of adopting the tropicalized cultivation system; generating data for the Agricultural Zoning of Climatic Risk – Zarc Canola 3.0 (new regions), in addition to training farmers through tools generated by the research: the online course (e-Campo), Sustainable Canola Production, and the Mais Canola App.

Another project action evaluated 18 canola hybrids in 14 municipalities in seven states of Brazil and generated data that will also be used for the project's research. This action will enable a broad understanding of the interaction of cultivars with the growing environments, in addition to providing data for Zarc Canola.

“With all these projects developed in partnership with the production sector, we want to make canola another successful case of tropicalization of crops in Brazil, increasingly consolidating the country as a reference in tropical agriculture in the world”, concludes Laviola.