German rapeseed meal exports are declining – UFOP

The German Association for the Promotion of Oilseeds and Cereals (UFOP) is using the data on the decline in rapeseed meal exports as an opportunity to declare a rejection of the reduction in the limit for biofuels from cultivated biomass proposed by the Federal Ministry for the Environment in its bill to amend the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Act.

The law serves the national implementation of the amended Renewable Energy Directive (RED III) and is under pressure, as Germany has already missed the implementation deadline stipulated in the directive.

The association therefore once again emphasizes that the biodiesel market is by far the most important sales market for German and European rapeseed and for German rapeseed mills with their processing capacity of around 10 million tons of seed per year. The production of biofuels and the availability of rapeseed meal are interdependent, the UFOP reminds, and therefore calls on the Federal Minister of Agriculture to advocate for an increase in the blending limit for biofuels to 5.3% as part of the ongoing interdepartmental coordination on the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Cap Act.

As the Union reports, this would offset the reduction in overall energy demand in transport as a result of the renewal of tax incentives for electric vehicles. Biofuels make a significant contribution to climate protection.

According to the Federal Statistical Office, Germany exported around 1.4 million tonnes of rapeseed meal from July 2024 to April 2025, which is 9% less than in the same period last year. German rapeseed meal is mainly supplied to EU member states (around 1.3 out of 1.4 million tonnes). The largest volume, 589,000 tonnes, was shipped to the Netherlands, which is nevertheless down almost 17% compared to the same period last year. Shipments of rapeseed meal to Sweden, the second-largest buyer, fell by 2%.

Shipments to Denmark, Finland and France developed positively. Denmark increased imports from Germany by 2% to 184,000 tonnes. France increased purchases by around 70% year-on-year to just under 99,000 tonnes amid a decline in the domestic rapeseed harvest. Outside the European Union, Switzerland and the United Kingdom were the main buyers of meal.

Earlier, the EU Crop Monitoring Service (MARS) lowered its rapeseed yield estimate in the EU countries, citing unfavourable weather expectations in the northern regions due to dry conditions.

Tags: Germany, rapeseed meal