A producer from north of Yorkton sent me an email about harvest conditions for his operation. He says that without exaggeration there are 50,000 birds in their pea fields right now – fields that are too wet to harvest. He’s displeased by the low level of migratory waterfowl damage that has been assessed by Saskatchewan Crop Insurance saying that he’s spent more money on propane and getting scare cannons that what waterfowl compensation will provide. While the peas are too wet to harvest, he has a 135 acre of field of wheat adjacent to the peas that they’ve been trying to harvest for the past three days. Each day, four to five hours is spent digging and pulling out combines and trucks. They hope to finally finish the field today, but will have to leave about 40 acres that they can’t access. This is a farmer in his late 30s, the future of the industry, but he’s very discouraged saying that if he thought he could sell out this year, he would. He’s still waiting for his $30 an acre payment for flooded out land. While it has been a difficult harvest for everyone, the difficulties in many east central and northeast areas have been extreme. I’m Kevin Hursh.
Hunters and farmers are going to be interacting even more than usual this fall. First of all, harvest is running late meaning farmers and hunters are driving the same back roads. As well, many areas have lots of waterfowl this year. Sloughs that are often bone dry by the fall are still brimming with water and that’s attracting ducks and geese. Whether hunters are after migratory waterfowl, upland game birds such as partridge, or big game a little later in the fall, courtesy and common sense go a long way. In my experience, most hunters are polite and respectful. They ask for permission to hunt and they go about the sport safely and professionally. They’ve often traveled a long way and they’re spending money in the local economy. Many return back to the same communities year after year and develop friendships with the locals. Unfortunately, there are always some bad apples that don’t follow proper procedures. They don’t establish a relationship with the landowner and wander around like they own the place. These are the ones that can spoil it for all the others. I’m Kevin Hursh.
A labour disruption is brewing at CN Rail. The Grain Growers of Canada has sent a letter to the federal Minister of Labour asking for both back to work legislation and “an immediate and appropriate dispute resolution process in the event of a labour disruption…” We haven’t had a major grain transportation problem in this country for a while now, but even when things are running smoothly we have a terrible record in getting product to customers on a timely basis. Add in regular labour issues and we hand our competitors a big advantage. In recent months, there has actually been some kind words uttered about rail service. Few observers believe all the problems have been solved, but things have been going well. However, with a labour dispute at CN reaching the boiling point, groups have been lining up to tell the federal government that a disruption in service is unacceptable. Unfortunately, sources indicate that there is a huge level of distrust between CN management and the unions. The relationship has even been described as dysfunctional. While the federal government will hopefully ensure that any work stoppage is brief, it isn’t good news for shippers to have CN and its workers at odds. I’m Kevin Hursh.
Is the glass half full or half empty? As farmers across the province finally make some harvest progress, there are many reasons to be disappointed. In many cases, though, you can find silver linings. Like many southern farmers, I’m still combining lentils. Whenever you’re still combining lentils at the end of September, it isn’t good news. The quality is low and the crop is so flat that a lot of it is staying in the field. However, even with the harvest losses, the yield is good. Another silver lining is the massive increase in lentil prices. As long as the quality is good enough to stay out of the sample grade, lentils will still be a money maker. That’s more than I can say about my kabuli chickpeas. They look good from a distance, but the frost that started the evening of September 18th and continued well into the morning of the 19th has destroyed the quality. Most of the seeds are going to remain green. Unfortunately, there isn’t much of a market for green chickpeas. Even on St. Patrick’s Day, no one wants green hummus. The silver lining in this case will be the crop insurance coverage. The way things have gone, it’s easy to be depressed, but as much as possible a person might as well look on the bright side. I’m Kevin Hursh.
In years when there is a lot of wheat and durum downgraded to feed quality, feed wheat values usually drop. That isn’t happening this year. In the Canadian Wheat Pool’s September Pool Return Outlook released yesterday, the expected prices for spring wheat are up by $4 to $30 a tonne compared to last month with the variation depending upon grade, class and protein content. No. 1 CWRS wheat with 14.5 per cent protein is up by the maximum $30 a tonne and so is the lowest grade – CW Feed. No one wants to end up with feed wheat, but the price could be worse. The Saskatchewan PRO is $4.23 a bushel. By comparison, the expected price for No. 1 CWRS with 12.5 per cent protein is $6.16 a bushel. A similar situation exists with durum. The durum PRO is up from $1 to $21 a tonne depending upon grade and protein content and the $21 is on No. 5 durum – the lowest grade. The Saskatchewan PRO for No. 5 durum is $4.07 a bushel as compared to $5.40 a bushel for No. 1 durum with 12.5 per cent protein. So why have feed wheat and No. 5 durum gained price strength? Because a lot of the price rise in the entire grain complex is due to rising corn prices. This will increase the opportunity to market wheat and durum into the feed market at better values. I’m Kevin Hursh.
A Saskatchewan company has launched organic flax supplements for pets. JUKA Flax Products of Canada says it has products on the shelves of over 50 pet food stores across Western Canada. The company’s organic flax products are “expected to advance pet nutrition and health in a market where pet food’s nutritional content is in question.” Their products include names such as Flax Forward and Canine Crunch. JUKA is saying really nice things about Canadian flax and its nutritional properties and it’s good for the flax industry to receive this praise. The news release was distributed by the Saskatchewan Flax Development Commission. I’m sorry to rain on the parade, but I have a couple problems with organic flax supplements in pet foods. First of all, it’s amazing to see what people will spend on their companion animals. Organic flax is typically much more expensive than conventionally produced flax. We’ve become a society in which a lot of pets are treated better than a lot of people. My second concern is how science is mixed with philosophy. One on hand, people are supposed to believe the health benefits of flaxseed. These benefits are real and have been proven scientifically. The supposed health benefits of organic production have little or no scientific basis. But, in the end, the customer is always right, and obviously many consumers are willing to lavish lots of money on their pets. I’m Kevin Hursh
If the weather forecast is correct, we’re finally going to get a spell of good harvest weather. Whether the results are good or bad, harvest progress will gradually help end all the uncertainty. What sort of yield is actually out there? How badly has quality been hurt by the wet weather? How severe is the frost damage? Is there going to be a crop insurance claim? Results to date show a huge range in quantity and quality over just a short distance. It’s hard to build a marketing plan when you don’t know what you have to work with. In some cases, producers are worried about meeting their contract requirements for crops that have been pre-sold. In other cases, producers will be looking at crop processing such as colour sorting in an effort to improve quality. Every producer lives in dread that when good harvesting weather finally arrives, untimely equipment breakdowns will cause further delays. It’ll feel good to make some substantial progress rather than just a few hours here and there. Uncertainty is hard on the nerves. I’m Kevin Hursh.
These are wild times for grain prices. It started with news that Russia was suspending grain exports due to their severe drought. More recently U.S. corn yields have been less than expected and as a result American corn futures are over $5 a bushel. Ordinarily that would mean rising barley prices on this side of the border. However, with all the wet weather and the hard frost over most of the Prairies, there’s an expectation that feed wheat will be available in abundance. As a result, the feed barley price direction is conflicted. In contrast, the frost has contributed to higher canola prices because there’s an expectation that the quantity and quality of the crop has been affected. The biggest price increases have been on large green lentils. If you’re lucky enough to have a No. 2 that isn’t contracted, there are price quotes approaching 40 cents a pound. Even if the grade has fallen to a No. 3, prices of around 23 cents a pound are available. That’s higher than the price you could have contracted on top grade product back in the spring. Meanwhile, there are crops that remain a big price disappointment. For instance, yellow pea prices remain ugly even though you hear lots of reports about disappointing pea yields. I’m Kevin Hursh.
I can’t claim credit for this idea. It can from a producer who would rather remain anonymous. The concept has been suggested by a number of farm groups, but the way this fall is going, it would now be particularly useful. Why not provide a tax incentive for the purchase of equipment related to grain drying? It could cover aeration equipment, grain driers, heaters, temperature cables, perhaps even new bins. To be fair, any purchases already made this year should be covered retroactively. The incentive could be as simple as increasing the capital cost allowance so that the assets can be depreciated more quickly. Producers who couldn’t benefit from more capital cost allowance this year could carry it forward to future years. Alternatively, a tax credit could be provided on these sorts of assets. This kind of government policy makes sense on a lot of fronts. More and better equipment would help producers preserve as much grain quality as possible in this very difficult year. It would be a way to help producers help themselves. It also has the benefit of helping to maintain markets around the world. Buyers are increasingly quality conscience and a lot of nasty problems can develop in grain that isn’t stored properly. Governments are going to be under pressure to do something for producers. This kind of broad policy concept is very easy to implement and it would have long-lasting benefits. I’m Kevin Hursh.
During this extended harvest delay, harvest plans are changing. I’ve heard from producers in some areas who are planning to leave their lentil fields sit and concentrate on their canola when the weather finally allows. The lentil crop is going to be hard to scrape off the ground and in many cases it’s going to be sprouted, wrinkled and bleached. Rather than spending precious time churning away on low-grade lentils or switching to wheat that has a relatively low value, some producers with canola ready to harvest will turn to that instead. Canola swathed well in advance of the frost should be good quality and it will combine a lot faster than lentils. There will be some lentils never combined this year and there are likely to be many producers in a crop insurance claim situation on the crop. Of course, producers will eventually turn their attention to salvaging what they can of the lentil crop, but not everybody with lentils to harvest will be turning to the crop right away. That could further affect the quantity of lentils available to the marketplace. I’m Kevin Hursh.