Due to the increasing demand for protein for livestock feeding, the interest in using canola meal in diets fed to swine is increasing. Canola meal is a product of the rapeseed plant, an abundant oilseed crop grown in Canada, the Northern United States, and parts of Europe. The oil is extracted for use in cooking and agriculture, leaving a high-protein meal that can be used in livestock feeding. Although the concentration of protein and amino acids and the amino acid profile of canola meal is less desirable than that of soybean meal, its relatively low cost may make it an attractive option for producers. Recently, new varieties of canola that contain more protein and less fiber have been selected. The de-oiled meals of these varieties have a concentration of crude protein that is close to that of de-hulled soybean meal.  However, there is no information about the digestibility of amino acid in high protein canola meal when fed to pigs.

It has also been speculated that changes in the traditional pre-press solvent extraction oil removal procedure may improve the quality of canola meal. The traditional procedure involves use of heat to desolventise the de-oiled meal, but a new procedure allows for production of canola meal using a low-temperature procedure. There are, however, no comparative data between meals produced using the traditional high temperature procedure and meals produced using the low-temperature procedure.

González, J. C. and H. H. Stein. 2011. Digestibility of AA in canola-, cotton-, and sunflower-products fed to finishing pigs. J. Anim. Sci. 89(E-Suppl. 2):100 (Abstr.) Link to abstract (.pdf)