Sunflower
There are two kinds of sunflowers grown commercially: oilseed sunflowers and confection sunflowers. Oilseed flowers are grown for oil production and birdseed. Sunflower oil is low in saturated fats and doesn’t have a strong taste. It is growing in popularity due to its heart-healthy reputation. Confection sunflowers produce seeds that are large gray and black striped seeds that are sold for snacks. They are sold either in the shell, roasted or salted, or shelled for salads and baking. Numerous varieties are used for confection seeds but primarily the Black Peredovic sunflower is grown for oilseed.
Soybean
Soybeans are a major oilseed crop grown in the world. Diversity of adaptation to climate and different regions provides cultivation in large areas reaching good levels of productivity through genetic improvement and technologies. The production of soybean meal and soybean oil are widely used in human food and animal production due to their high levels of protein and energy.
Rapeseed
Rapeseed is a winter or spring annual oil crop in the Brassica family. It is also known as rape and oilseed rape. Rapeseed is related to mustard, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and turnip. Rapeseed plants grow from three to five feet tall and have yellow flowers with four petals. It has a deep taproot and a fibrous, near-surface root system.Rapeseed is primarily grown for its oil. A big challenge to profitable rapeseed production is the limited use and market for the meal remaining after oil processing. In some areas, rapeseed, which contains more than 40 percent oil, becomes more profitable than soybeans, which contain 18 percent oil. Rapeseed is also beneficial as a cover crop and for annual forage. It provides good soil cover over winter to prevent soil erosion, produces large amounts of biomass, suppresses weeds, and can improve soil tilth with its root system.
