Disconnect between producers and consumers A recent survey by Farm Credit Canada shows consumer demand doesn’t rate high on the radar screen of most producers. Consumer demand ranked last when producers and agribusiness owners were asked what factors were driving any changes they planned to make to their operations this year. FCC has published an edition of its Knowledge Insider that delineates consumer trends. For instance, populations are becoming more ethnically diverse and that presents opportunities for certain food products. In general, consumers increasingly want healthy, convenient food that is safe to eat. And there’s increasing concern about the environmental impact of food choices. So why aren’t these trends of interest to most producers? It’s because most of us don’t actually sell directly to consumers. Producers at farmers markets do and so do direct marketers such as Pine View Farms, but the majority of producers sell to intermediaries. We worry about the grading standards for grains and having the most popular colour and weight of calves. We conform to the rules for animal ID and registered crop protection products. We assume the price incentives and rules are indicative of what consumers are demanding, but unfortunately most of us are far removed from the end users. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 28, 2009
Tribute to Paul Beingessner The passing of Paul Beingessner was a shock. Paul’s specialty was grain transportation. He was instrumental in the founding of Southern Rails Co-op, the first short line railway in the province. Paul knew the industry and he wasn’t afraid to lambast the railways and the federal government. I shared most of Paul’s views on grain transportation policy, but I didn’t agree with many of the other opinions he espoused in his weekly columns. Still, it was always a pleasure to read his strongly held views. He was a gifted communicator with an extremely sharp mind who always stood up for smaller farmers. While his columns could be cutting, he was a gentle man with a great sense of humour. Through his writing and his consulting work on grain transportation, Paul Beingessner touched many people across Western Canada. It’s tragic when anyone dies in a farming accident. It’s rare when the victim is someone so well known. Reports say he became entangled in a haybine. Farming is the one of the most dangerous occupations. Unlike other industries, many of the fatalities are young people or people in their senior years. Paul was 55 – a typical age for producers and he had a lifetime of farming experience. His death sends a message to the rest of us – a message about being careful in the farm workplace. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 26, 2009
Take precipitation maps with a grain of salt Precipitation maps can show a lot of deviation depending upon who’s putting them together. Yesterday’s crop report from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture includes a colour-coded precipitation map for the week ending June 22 as well as a map of total accumulated precipitation since April 1. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada publishes ongoing precipitation maps on its Drought Watch website. There are a lot of differences between the two sources. Take the area where I farm northwest of Swift Current. According to Ag Canada, rainfall in the past week has been less than an inch. According to the Sask Ag crop report, rainfall topped two inches. That’s quite a discrepancy. Based on farm rain gages in the immediate area, Sask Ag seems to have it right. There are a lot of other discrepancies as well, such as in a big area northeast and southeast of Regina where Sask Ag says there was over two inches and Ag Canada has it pegged at a lot less. The accumulated precip maps since April 1 also look significantly different between the two sources. Rainfall can vary a great deal over a short distance, and the Sask Ag maps are probably more accurate since they’re based on measurements taken by volunteer crop reporters in nearly every rural municipality. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 24, 2009
Encouraging greenfeed Despite recent rain, forage is going to be in short supply this year. Early drought, cool weather and frost have taken a big toll on hay and pasture. There are no easy answers. In past droughts, governments have experimented with a number of different policies. There’s been trucking assistance to move hay supplies and assistance to move cattle to better pastures. Feed grain and forage listing services have been launched. Some of the policies that make the most sense are related to Crop Insurance. The federal and Saskatchewan governments have now acted on that front. Crop Insurance is extending the seeding deadline for greenfeed crops from June 30 to July 15. That should encourage more producers to seed greenfeed if their original crop has failed. As well, producers who have Crop Insurance will be able to seed and insure any cereal greenfeed crop. If it keeps raining, growing greenfeed may provide a revenue source for some grain producers while also increasing the feed supply. It’s not a total answer, but it’s a better strategy that subsidizing large trucking bills. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 23, 2009
Lentils are the top money crop Lentils are the undisputed champion among Saskatchewan cropping options this year. There’s a record acreage and the crop will be the top money-maker for thousands of producers. According to the seeded acreage survey released yesterday by Statistics Canada, Saskatchewan has 2.3 million acres of lentils, a 44 per cent increase over last year. Despite the huge acreage, prices have been incredibly strong. Back in January during Crop Production Week, most market analysts were advising producers to sell their inventory of lentils and to prepare for lower prices in the growing year ahead. The analysts were dead wrong. At that time, red lentil prices were around 30 cents a pound. Now they’re in the range of 47 cents. That’s a $10 a bushel price improvement. Producers who held off on sales made a lot of money. Large green lentils have seen a similar price increase and are now sitting at around 40 cents a pound. Currently, you can lock in a portion of your new crop large green production at 30 cents a pound, while contracts for reds are around 36 cents. Lentils look stellar compared to other cropping options. The biggest regret for many producers is contracting too soon and not getting the top prices for new crop. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 22, 2009
Combines for lease Machinery Link says its combine leasing program is becoming more popular in Western Canada. This fall, the Kansas City based company expects to move 40 combines from the U.S. into Western Canada. By leasing combines to producers who need them at different times, Machinery Link tries to maximize the use of the machines. A lot of producers find this to be an economical way to access a late model combine. Producers chose their start date and their end date for when they need the combine. The per hour lease rate decreases as the number of hours increases. The lowest rates are around $150 per separator hour. Company reps attending last week’s Farm Progress Show in Regina said there are two models available this fall – John Deere 9770 and Case/IH 7088. Machinery Link delivers the combines and pays for repairs and maintenance. To promote responsible use, producers are billed for 50 per cent of the cost of belts, straw chopper and discharge beater repairs. Producers are responsible for their own headers and they also have to get insurance on the combine for the time they have it. Machinery Link started with three combines back in 2000 and now claims to have the largest privately owned fleet of combines in North America. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 21, 2009
Huge rainfall event correctly predicted A huge amount of rain has fallen over a massive area of the Prairies. For some of the driest areas, it may be too late to salvage a reasonable crop, but for many other areas this rain has greatly improved production prospects. This huge rainfall event was correctly predicted by Drew Lerner, the president of World Weather Inc. based in Kansas. Larry Weber of Weber Commodities in Saskatoon is doing regular podcasts that are posted on the Saskatchewan Flax Development Commission website. Last Thursday, the podcast featured Drew Lerner who said a significant rainfall event was coming to the dry regions of western Saskatchewan and Alberta. He said the rain would be Sunday and Monday and he conservatively estimated accumulations at half an inch to 1.5 inches. He also said there was potential for higher amounts. Drew Lerner basically nailed the prediction of a major rainfall event long before Environment Canada ever figured it out. Looking ahead, Lerner is saying that it will be important to get more rainfall over the next three weeks because by mid to late July a high pressure ridge is likely to shut down most of the precipitation events on the Prairies. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 19, 2009
Young farmers are home grown and imported Not all young farmers are home grown. Just look at this year’s nominees for Saskatchewan’s Outstanding Young Farmers program. Two of the three nominees are imports. The home grown nominee is Ryan and Jennifer Wilfing who run Wilfing Farms Ltd. of Meadow Lake. Ryan grew up on the family farm that his grandfather homesteaded. Today Ryan and his wife Jennifer are pedigreed seed growers with their own seed cleaning plant. Another nominee is Art and Elaine Pruim. They moved to Saskatchewan from B.C. in 1998, buying land near Osler to establish a dairy operation. By continually increasing their quota and cows, the Pruims now have a 400 head dairy. The third nominee for Saskatchewan OYF is also an import. Frank Groeneweg grew up on a grain farm in central France and went to work on an Iowa farm at age 19. In Iowa, Frank met his wife Kari, who was from Alberta. Seeking opportunity, they bought land near Edgeley, Saskatchewan and have established a large grain farm. This year’s nominees to Saskatchewan OYF show that Saskatchewan is a land of opportunity for farmers that have grown up here as well as for producers from other provinces and countries. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 17, 2009
And the best seeding system is... The Farm Progress Show is a great place for comparing seeding systems. Saskatchewan brand names are everywhere – Seed Hawk, Seed Master, Morris Industries, Bourgault, Harmon and K-Hart, just to name a few. Saskatchewan farmers use a wide variety of seeding systems. All have their advantages and disadvantages. This year, producers using long-obsolete discers often have better crop establishment than they’re high-tech neighbours. There are also producers still using airseeders with sweeps, followed by harrow packing and they seem to get good results most of the time. Disc openers typically provide accurate seed placement with minimal soil disturbance, but sometimes you hear report of more severe frost damage on emerging plants because the system doesn’t leave as much black soil. For airdrills, there are all sorts of options for openers. This gets especially complicated if you’re double shooting and need separation of the seed and fertilizer. Several systems are now available that provide depth control for each individual packer and opener. Downward pressure is applied hydraulically. These systems follow the ground very well, but some observers worry about long term maintenance of the hydraulic systems. Which seeding system is best depends on your region, soil type, moisture conditions, fertilizer use, budget and personal preference. You can hear all the pros and cons while touring through the Farm Progress Show. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 16, 2009
Lingenfelter takes ag critic role Agricultural issues should have an elevated profile now that Dwain Lingenfelter has named himself as the NDP’s agriculture critic. Unlike anyone else in the NDP caucus, the new leader of the Saskatchewan New Democrats is a long-time farmer. He served a short stint as agriculture minister in the Romanow government. Lingenfelter is taking over the ag critic role from Pat Atkinson. Atkinson did a pretty good job on the file, but it’s hard to get traction of farm issues when your party lacks rural representation. The Saskatchewan Party has a number of bona fide producers and has a lock on rural constituencies. With Lingenfelter, the NDP finally has someone who can potentially give the party a measure of rural credibility. Of course, it’s easy to be a critic. It’s much tougher to come up with your own rational and functional policies. At this point, little is known about the ag policies the NDP will advocate under its new leader and ag critic. Hopefully, the policies will be pragmatic rather than dogmatic. I’m Kevin Hursh.
How do you prepare for a poor crop? The Grain Growers of Canada has written to federal and provincial agriculture ministers asking that they immediately begin planning for what will likely be widespread claims across the Prairies. “With the cold spring, delayed planting and drought across much of the cropping area of Western Canada, we have a large disaster in the making,” says Doug Robertson, president of the Grain Growers of Canada. This is an umbrella group encompassing organizations such as the Alberta Barley Commission, the Canadian Canola Growers Association, the Western Barley Growers and the Western Canadian Wheat Growers. Robertson says we are at the point where there is little hope of a normal crop and governments should begin work now in anticipation of the problems. The analysis is correct. Crop prospects are not good. What governments can do about it is less clear. Crop Insurance programs are the first line of defence, and they usually do a good job of handling claims. As for AgriStability, it reacts well after an income shortfall. AgriInvest is too new to be of much help. AgriRecovery allows for special federal/provincial responses, but no one seems to have a suggestion for how that could help at this point. So yes, there’s a big problem looming, but there’s not much that producers or governments can do about it right now. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 14, 2009
Beef marketing money likely to be reduced Cowboy politics in Alberta is going to have an impact on cattle producers across the country. The $3 per head cattle check off in Alberta has long gone to an organization called Alberta Beef Producers. The $3 is deducted every time an animal changes hands. ABP and Alberta Agriculture Minister George Groeneveld haven’t been on good terms in recent times. Groeneveld, with considerable government money, has set up the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency, forging a strategy without consultations with ABP. Now Groeneveld is planning to introduce legislation that will make the cattle check off refundable. Alberta is home to many massive feedlots. For them, the check off adds up to a lot of money. Most observers expect a significant percentage of the check off dollars will be lost. At its recent meeting in Edmonton, ABP delegates examined budgetary cuts and financial restructuring in preparation for the change. The expected loss in revenue goes beyond ABP. The money also goes to fund marketing organizations like the Beef Information Centre, which promotes beef domestically and the Canada Beef Export Federation, which works to get Canadian beef into foreign markets. Watch for these organizations to have their funding reduced as a result of the policy change in Alberta. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 11, 2009
Explain this global warming thing to me again Even with the best case weather scenario for the remainder of the growing season, Prairie grain production is going to be below normal. Yesterday, Bruce Burnett, the director of weather and market analysis for the Canadian Wheat Board provided an overview of the conditions so far this year. Wet with delayed seeding in much of Manitoba. Dry in Western Saskatchewan and much of Alberta. Damaging frosts in many locations. Delayed crop development everywhere. Below normal temperatures have been with us for five or six months now. In the entire Prairie region, May was cooler than normal. Growing Degree Days this spring are around half of normal at most Prairie locations. At Swift Current, Growing Degree Days are 62 per cent of normal, but they’re only 46 per cent of normal at Weyburn and 45 per cent of normal at North Battleford. Little wonder the crop is so far behind. Burnett also made an interesting observation about the dry regions. Unless rain comes right away a lot of crops are going to fail. If rain comes in the weeks ahead, a significant acreage may be seeded to green feed because there’s going to be a big demand for feed from the cattle industry. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 10, 2009
Unpaid farmers The Canadian Grain Commission is providing partial compensation to some of the producers who sold grain to West-Can Agra Inc. in Plum Coulee, Manitoba. For a federal government that wants to get the commission out of the licensing and bonding business, this is a prime example of the limitations of the current system. However, it also shows what can happen without some sort of system to protect producers. West-Can Agra was de-licensed on February 11. The Canadian Grain Commission used the $300,000 security posted by the company to compensate producers who had not been paid. Of the 23 producers who submitted claims, only 17 were eligible. Six producers had their claims denied because of they were outside of the required time frame. Producers are only covered by a licensed company’s security for 90 days from the date they deliver their grain or 30 days from the date they are issued a cash purchase ticket or cheque. Producers must also advise the commission within 30 days of a company’s refusal to pay. In this case, the $300,000 security was far less than the nearly $454,000 in eligible claims so even producers with an eligible claim will take a loss. Still, 66 cents on the dollar is a lot better than nothing. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 9, 2009
Crop prospects take a beating A trio of problems is threatening the Saskatchewan crop – drought, frost and delayed development. Delayed development is a concern in most regions. In lots of fields, you have to get down on your hands and knees and maybe brush away some soil to find emerging plants. Some early-seeded crop has decent growth, but overall development is no where near normal. Usually by this point in June, post-emergent herbicide application is well underway. Not this year. Producers are still waiting for crops and weeds to develop. Many areas have received frost. Every year, there is frost concern somewhere and talk of reseeding. This spring, the frost damage is much more widespread and the reseeding is more than just talk. Crops in all parts of the province will need rapid development to beat the first fall frost. On top of the cold spring, west central Saskatchewan is facing a serious drought with other areas not far behind. It may seem a bit premature in June to predict how the Saskatchewan crop is going to turn out, but the odds right now are for below average production with below average quality. I’m Kevin Hursh.
Rather than having a banquet, go to the farmers market The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan has come up with a novel way to feed and entertain the people attending the APAS midterm meeting in Saskatoon. Most meetings have a banquet with a speaker and/or entertainment in the evening. Instead of a sit-down banquet, APAS delegates, speakers and guests will each receive coupons worth $25 so they can sample and enjoy a variety of food items prepared by the Saskatoon Farmers Market. There will also be unique entertainment for the evening. A banquet at a hotel typically costs more than $25. By partnering with the Saskatoon Farmers Market in this novel approach, a lot of dollars will go directly into the pockets of producers. And rather than sitting in a meeting room on a spring evening, participants will be able to mingle and visit as they sample locally grown food. The event is Wednesday, June 24 from 5:00 to 10:00 pm at the Saskatoon Farmers Market. Individual passes are available for purchase at a cost of $25. Anyone interested should check out the APAS website at www.apas.ca. Click on the link for the 2009 midterm meeting. Maybe this approach will catch on for all sorts of meetings that occur in any city or town with a farmers market. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 7, 2009
Sorting out the rain and the frost It’s going to take awhile to figure out overall crop conditions following the weather of the past few days. There has been substantial precipitation in most southern regions of the grainbelt. Unfortunately, the moisture didn’t go very far north, largely missing the west central region of the province where soil conditions are the driest. Hay and pasture production is already doomed to be well below normal in this dry region and time is rapidly running out for grain, oilseed and specialty crops. Many parts of the northern grainbelt are also looking for rain. It’ll be interesting to see the accumulated moisture totals to determine exactly which areas received rain and which did not. The other factor is frost. Many areas dropped below freezing last week and frost hit again on the weekend. Frost in June is never good news. It’s getting late enough in the growing season that reseeding a damaged crop is not attractive. Plus, much of the frost damage seems to be in regions where the moisture is too short for establishing a new crop. The crop report from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture on Thursday should help shed light on the recent events. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 4, 2009
Rocky start to growing season For early June, crop development is was behind where it should be. The crop report released yesterday by the Ministry of Agriculture says 60 to 80 per cent of Saskatchewan crops are behind normal in development. In the areas I’ve travelled, a lot of crop is yet to emerge. Over the past couple days I’ve travelled from Saskatoon to the Calgary area and back. West Central Saskatchewan is the driest part of the province and conditions aren’t pretty. There are very few crops with decent germination and development. In a large percentage of seeded fields, there’s no crop emergence that you can see from the road. In many other fields, there are only faint patches of green. A lot of the native pasture has little or no new growth. Pasture that’s seen significant grazing pressure is about as bare as a city sidewalk. Usually by early June post emergent herbicide application is in full swing. Not this year. Crops everywhere are late and the dry zones are expanding. Provincially, most crops are still rated as fair to good. In West Central Saskatchewan, a large percentage of the crop is rated as poor or very poor. Crop ratings in every region are going to decline without significant rain. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 3, 2009
Enhanced nitrogen fixation McGill University of Montreal and Becker Underwood of Ames, Iowa have signed a commercial licensing agreement. The agreement grants Becker Underwood exclusive rights to patented nitrogen-fixing technology developed by a team of McGill researchers. The technology involves a fatty acid compound shown to be highly effective in stimulating rhizobia to produce the substances needed for increased nodule formation and greater nitrogen fixation. In Western Canada, this is important for pulse crops such as lentils and peas, as well as alfalfa. Becker Underwood anticipates commercial availability of its first products incorporating this patented new technology for the 2010 spring planting season. Additional new products utilizing the technology are expected in 2011 and beyond. Although the company is based in Iowa, it has a major plant in Saskatoon. Back in 2000, Becker Underwood purchased the Saskatchewan-based company MicroBio RhizoGen. Becker Underwood claims to be the leading global producer of inoculants and this new technology from McGill should be another boost for the company. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 2, 2009
Glyphosate should get cheaper The St. Louis Post-Dispatch had an interesting story on glyphosate prices in a recent edition. The story by Jeffry Tomich says a flood of inexpensive Chinese-made herbicide and deep price cuts by rivals are leading Monsanto to cut profit expectations for Roundup. According to the story, renewed competition from China is coming faster than Monsanto anticipated. Monsanto expects to sell about 200 million gallons of glyphosate-based herbicide this year – 22 per cent less than last year. Still, the company is reported to be continuing the expansion of a glyphosate manufacturing plant in Louisiana that could reportedly increase the global supply by about 10 per cent. The plant expansion is a byproduct of a glyphosate shortage a couple years ago. At that time, prices were rising and supplies were often tough to get, especially the supplies of lower cost generic products. Based on this newspaper story out of Monsanto’s home town of St. Louis, the glyphosate market should become more competitive with better deals available for producers. I’m Kevin Hursh.
June 1, 2009
Short term pain, long term gain? Cattle industry experts are in general agreement that the long-term outlook is bright for the beef industry. However, the short term outlook is cloudy. At the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association annual meeting in Moose Jaw, a substantial list of long term positives were listed by presenters. Pork, poultry and beef supplies are all dropping in North America. As the world economy improves, demand and prices will improve for many beef products, including the hides. Markets in Korea, Japan and China will eventually open to Canadian beef and beef products. And the domestic market is becoming more important to the industry meaning producers will be less dependent on exports. Unfortunately, in the short term, optimism is being tempered by recent developments. The rapidly rising value of the Canadian dollar relative to the U.S. greenback is hurting price prospects. As well, the drought in Western Saskatchewan and Alberta could precipitate a continued sell-off of Canadian breeding stock. It will also make hay more expensive. Most observers believe that calf prices this fall should be a bit better than last year, but cow-calf producers could still end up working for little or no net return. I’m Kevin Hursh.
Archives
Kevin Hursh's daily agricultural report is heard Monday through Friday on Swift Current (CKSW), Shaunavon (CJSN), Moose Jaw (CHAB), Estevan (CJSL), Weyburn (CFSL), Rosetown/Kindersley (1330/1210), Lloydminster (CKSA) and Melfort (CJVR).
