Canola meal is a commodity which is currently sold as a low value animal feed ingredient. It is a composite of soluble and insoluble protein, fiber, soluble non-structural carbohydrates, phytate and minerals.
Canola meal contains approximately 36% protein. Canola protein is of high quality because of its good balance of essential amino acids and the low molecular weight of the major storage protein. The amino acid balance provides excellent nutritional value and the low molecular weight results in very low antigenicity, which suggests that food allergenicity issues will be minimal.
A commonly used measure of protein quality is the Protein Efficiency Ratio (“PER”) which compares the total weight gain of a growing animal to the weight of protein consumed over the growing period. Based on this measure, canola protein has been shown to be superior to other plant based sources such as soy and pea and competitive with milk and beef. (Source: Sarwar et al.)
| Plant Proteins | PER | Animal Proteins | PER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canola | 3.29 | Egg white | 3.71 |
| Soy | 1.60 | Minced beef | 3.36 |
| Pea | 1.56 | Casein (milk) | 3.13 |
Canola meal also contains high levels of fiber (12%) and phytate (3.1%) which significantly impair the nutritional value of the composite canola meal product.
Canola meal’s fiber and phytate levels are too high for effective use in aquaculture and for optimal use in swine and poultry. The fiber dilutes the protein and the phytate is poorly digested. Phytate has antinutritional properties and impairs protein and amino acid digestion. Further, phytate is the storage form of phosphorus in plants and undigested phytate-phosphorus in animal waste is a significant environmental concern. The digestive systems of ruminant animals (cattle) are well suited for fiber and phytate consumption. However, ruminant animals do not make good use of the high quality protein component of canola meal because these proteins are rapidly hydrolyzed by rumen bacteria.
The composite nature of canola meal is such that it is not a quality feed ingredient for any one species and it is sold as a protein source for a variety of species with markedly different digestive capacities and nutrient requirements. The poor combination of elements and lower protein level result in canola meal trading at a 35% discount to soybean meal.
| Canola Meal | Soybean Meal | |
|---|---|---|
|
Worldwide production (million MT) |
21 | 116 |
| Protein (%) | 36 | 48 |
| Crude Fiber (%) | 12 | 3.9 |
|
Methionine
(% of meal) (% of protein) (% digest. - swine) |
0.74 2.05 82.00 |
0.67 1.40 86.00 |
|
Lysine (% of meal) (% of protein) (% digest. - swine) |
2.08 5.78 74.00 |
3.02 6.29 85.00 |
| Phytate (%) | 3.10 | 1.70 |
