The area devoted to rapeseed cultivation has doubled in the governorate of Beja during the 2023-2024 agricultural campaign, with 7,000 hectares under cultivation, compared with 3,500 hectares before, Deputy Director of the Beja Regional Union of Agriculture and Fisheries Sofien Rezgui told TAP news agency.
The increase in rapeseed cultivation is due to the success of the awareness campaign carried out by the URAP in Beja the previous year, targeting 300 farmers, aimed at explaining the economic profitability of this agricultural sector, especially in view of the decline in sunflower cultivation and the difficulties in marketing it.
He pointed out that growing rapeseed produces an excellent oil, ranked 2nd after olive oil, and also provides fodder rich in protein, which helps support food security in Tunisia.
Rapeseed can be planted in all the delegations of Beja where the land is fertile, especially in the north of the region where the yield from a single hectare of rapeseed varies from 7 quintals to 34 quintals depending on the area, he added.
The goal is to grow 50,000 hectares of rapeseed in Beja, he specified, adding that the goal for this season had been to grow 25,000 hectares, but the late rainfall has prevented this from being achieved.
