in the 13th century. Rapeseed oil extracts were first put on the market in 1956-1957 as food products, but these had several unacceptable properties. That form of rapeseed oil had a distinctive taste and a greenish colour due to the presence of chlorophyll, and still contained a higher concentration of erucic acid.

Canola was bred from rapeseed cultivars of B. napus and B. rapa at the University of Manitoba in the early 1970s. Its nutritional