Ukrainian-Polish rapeseed relations are developing in two ways. In years of crop failure Polish companies enter Ukrainian market to make large purchases of raw materials to load their crushing facilities. In bumper-crop years Polish farmers come out on strikes and require limiting rapeseed imports from Ukraine, because they cannot compete with Ukrainian prices.

During past years Ukraine increased its rapeseed crushing, while exports of raw material, including to Poland, dropped. Long-lasting (more than a year and a half) decrease of world crude oil prices  reduced profitability of biodiesel  production. Moreover, Europe paid more attention to cheaper palm oil and waste vegetable oils to produce “green” energy – this trend has been observed in the market since the 2014/15 season. The prospects of rapeseed crushing to biofuel look increasingly doubtful, BlackSeaGrain reports.