Spike in biodiesel imports sees big falls in rapeseed prices

FEDIOL has raised concerns about the rise in imported biodiesel, which has led to devastating consequences for the Europe-based feedstock at EU farm level.
The vegetable oil and protein meal industry said imports of biofuels like HVO or FAME are taking place at such a scale that this has led to disturbances in the EU markets for rapeseed methyl ester and in the rapeseed oil markets.
Over the last five months, prices for rapeseed oil have dropped significantly by over 30 % to €800 per ton, driving down physical rapeseed prices for spot delivery from €625 per ton to €410 per ton over the same period.
Also, futures prices for new rapeseed crop, providing rapeseed farmers with a price indicator, have declined from about €600 per ton in early January to levels of about €400 per ton by mid-May 2023.
This will not only impact rapeseed farmers’ revenue, but also future planting decisions. These trends cannot be explained by other market developments and are a signal that there is abnormal market behaviour.
The magnitude of biodiesel imports’ growth is such that it raises question as to the authenticity of their classification as originating from waste streams, the organisation added. There is urgent need to investigate the legitimacy of these imports, it concluded.