The French old crop rapeseed futures contract hit a record 340 euros per tonne, up 11.50 euros, on Friday, as short supplies on the cash market forced some traders to scramble to cover short positions.
By 1300 GMT the June contract had slipped back but still up 2.5 euros a tonne at 331 euros.
Volume was a relatively light 116 lots. "This is a crisis situation," a trader said.
"It looks like some had urgent needs and were ready to pay a high price for that, especially since there is almost nothing left in the cash market," he added.
The price reached was the highest seen on Euronext since the launch of the rapeseed contract in 1994, traders said.
Some traders said the bulk of the demand came from Germany.
"German traders are thought to be short and German oilseed crushers are also in the market," one trader said.
One trader also said the rise had been accelerated by talk that a shipment of 40,000 to 50,000 tonnes of Australian rapeseed heading to Europe may have been redirected to Pakistan.
Most traders said they believed the contract would continue rising or at least stabilise until its expiry on May 31.
"It is unlikely to fall and I would not be surprised if it touched the 350 euros a tonne," one trader said.
New crop rapeseed futures were up 0.50 euro a tonne with August at 256.50 euros a tonne, buoyed by the rally in oil prices, close to 13-year highs, which is bullish for biofuels, and good crushing margins.
More than 25 percent of France's rapeseed output is used to produce biodiesel.