Brassica oilseed crops in Japan: cultivation, consumption, and cultivars
2025
Shinya NAKUI | Tetsuo MIKAMI
Brassica oilseed crops are the third most important source of edible vegetative oils in the world. Among these crops, the cultivation history of B. rapa goes back to very ancient times in Japan. Its cultivation area expanded substantially in the 17th century and Brassica oil was used as fuel for lamps and cooking oil. Brassica napus was introduced into Japan mainly as an oil crop in the late 19th century, after which it gradually replaced the heirloom B. rapa cultivars used in the production of edible oil. The rapeseed (B. rapa and B. napus) cultivation area in Japan reached its peak in the 1950s and then decreased rapidly due to increase of imports of inexpensive oilseed crops. In recent years, however, domestic cultivation of B. napus has started to increase again. Japanese people consume rapeseed oil well and consider it to be a healthy oil with low levels of saturated fatty acids. This article aims to provide the information about the history, current state, problems, and prospects of rapeseed cultivation in Japan. The paper also describes an overview of agronomic characteristics of representative Japanese cultivars as well as cultural practices.
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