Canola – Where to for WA Agriculture?

Canola may be marketed as oilseed, oil or meal. Supply and demand of each of the commodities is influenced by, physical factors associated with land and weather, substitute commodity competition, land-use competition, production indirectly associated with canola such as that within the livestock industry and the effects of technology and more specifically plant breeding. Furthermore, domestic agricultural and international trade policies, standard of living, and political stability of countries involved in the canola market together with exchange rates will also affect supply and demand for canola products. The implications of genetically modified canola also need to be understood along with each of the aforementioned factors and their relationship with each other to help predict the future for this crop. This paper provides such an overview and explains how Western Australia fits into the market