Brassica oilseed crops in Japan : cultivation, consumption, and cultivars

Nakui, Shinya (author), Mikami, Tetsuo (author)

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 L. ssp.napus was introduced into Japan mainly as an oil crop in the late 19th century, after which it gradually replaced the heirloom B. rapa L. ssp. oleifera (DC.) Metzg. 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.

• Language: English
• Keywords: Brassica napus, Brassica rapa, breeding, cultivation history, cultural practices, vegetative oil
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.02 - Review Article
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: 8 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 121, no. 2
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-170823
• UDC: 631
• ISSN on article: 1854-1941
• DOI: 10.14720/aas.2025.121.2.19925
• COBISS.SI-ID: 242842115
• Publication date in RUL: 17.07.2025

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Acta agriculturae Slovenica
• Publisher: Biotehniška fakulteta, Oddelek za agronomijo in Oddelek za zootehniko, Biotehniška fakulteta, Oddelek za agronomijo in Oddelek za zootehniko, Univerza v Ljubljani, Biotehniška fakulteta, Založba Univerze v Ljubljani
• ISSN: 1854-1941
• COBISS.SI-ID: 219581184

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Oljarice iz rodu Brassica na Japonskem

Abstract

Oljarice iz rodu Brassica so tretji najpomembnejši vir jedilnega rastlinskega olja v svetovnem merilu. Med njimi se je gojenje oljne repice (B. rapa) na Japponskem pričelo že v pradavnini. Površine njenega gojenja so se močno povečale v 17. stoletju, ko se je njeno olje uporabljalo kot gorivo za svetiljke in kuhanje. Oljna ogrščica (Brassica napus L. ssp. napus) je bila uvedena na Japonsko pretežno kot oljarica v poznem 19. stoletju in je nadomestila sorte oljne repice (B. rapa L.ssp. oleifera (DC.) Metzg.), ki so se uporabljale za pridelavo jedilnega olja. Površina gojenja obeh vrst je na Japonskem dosegla višek v petdesetih letih prejšnega stoletja in potem hitro upadla zaradi povečanega uvoza poceni jedilnega olja iz teh vrst. V zadnjih letih se domača pridelava oljne ogrščice spet povečuje, ker ga prebivalstvo rado uporablja kot zdravo jedilno olje z majhno vsebnostjo nasičenih maščobnih kislin. Namen članka je podati informacije o zgodovini, sedanjem stanju, problemih in bodočem gojenju oljne ogrščice na Japonskem. Članek daje tudi pregled agronomskih lastnosti japonskih sort kot tudi o načinih gojenja.

• Keywords: oljna repica, oljna ogrščica, žlahtnjenje rastlin, zgodovina gojenja, tehnike gojenja, rastlinsko olje