Low-Fiber Canola. Part 1. Chemical and Nutritive Composition of the Meal

The objective of the current study was to evaluate the chemical and nutritive composition of meals derived from a newly developed yellow-seeded Brassica napus canola and the canola-quality Brassica juncea. In comparison with its conventional black-seeded counterpart, meal derived from yellow-seeded B. napus canola contained more protein (49.8 vs 43.8% DM), more sucrose (10.2 vs 8.8% DM), and less total dietary fiber (24.1 vs 30.1% DM). B. juncea canola showed intermediate levels of protein, sucrose, and dietary fiber (47.4, 9.2, and 25.8%, respectively). The reduction in fiber content of yellow-seeded B. napus canola was a consequence of a bigger seed size, a lower contribution of the hull fraction to the total seed mass, and a lower content of lignin with associated polyphenols of the hull fraction. The meal derived from yellow-seeded B. napvs canola would appear to have quality characteristics superior to those from black-seeded B. napus or yellow-seeded B. juncea.