Canadian farmers race to reap wheat while sun shines, but damage done
23/10/2018 16:48
By Rod Nickel
WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Sunny skies may allow
Canadian farmers to swiftly make up for harvest delays this
week, wrapping up a nightmarish season for some.
But while the harvest is finally on its way in the
third-biggest wheat-exporting country, weather troubles look to
dent farm incomes due to quality problems that are also forcing
some millers to scrounge for supplies.
As of early last week, harvesting of major crops was only
half finished in Alberta, at a time when usually it is nearly
complete. Harvests in other provinces are more advanced.
Hot, dry summer weather raised fears about shrunken yields,
before rain and snow in September stalled field work. Alberta is
the second-biggest wheat-growing province, accounting for about
one-third of Canada's output.
At Kevin Bender's farm near Sylvan Lake, Alberta, wet
weather shut down harvest operations for a full month starting
in early September, leaving him just one-quarter finished as of
a week ago and "behind the eight-ball," he said.
Warm weather in the past week allowed Bender to double his
progress harvesting wheat, canola and barley to 50 percent
finished, and he expects to nearly finish this week if the
weather holds.
Even so, much of the province's wheat will fall short of
milling quality, which pays farmers the highest prices, because
wet weather caused it to sprout in the field, affecting
potential dough strength for bakers.
"The quality is gone and not coming back," said Bender,
chair of the Alberta Wheat Commission industry group.
That prospect made for a nervous autumn for Rogers Foods, a
subsidiary of Japan's Nisshin Seifun Group 2002.T . The British
Columbia miller normally buys in Alberta all of its Canada
Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat, which it mills into flour that
produces bread, tortillas and bagels.
Sub-par Alberta crops pose the biggest threat to Rogers'
supply in about a decade, forcing it to shop for CWRS wheat
further east in Saskatchewan, at greater cost, said grain
procurement manager Pip Jordan.
Alberta wheat still in fields is unlikely to be suitable,
Jordan said.
"It's a serious situation," he said.
Archer Daniels Midland Co ADM.N , which mills wheat in
Alberta, did not respond to a request for comment.
Mills owned by Ardent Mills, a joint venture of Cargill Inc
CARG.UL , CHS Inc CHSCP.O and Conagra Brands Inc CAG.N , are
located east of Alberta, mitigating the potential impact on its
supply.
"There are pockets of quality issues in some areas as crops
were not harvested before the moisture came. We’ve experienced
this before, and we have processes in place to ensure consistent
supply of quality and functional flours,” said Buck
Vanniejenhuis, general manager for Ardent's Canadian division.
Thankfully for millers in Canada, the United States and
Japan - the major buyers of high-quality Canadian wheat -
earlier harvested crops from Manitoba and Saskatchewan should
provide ample supplies, said Cam Dahl, president of industry
group Cereals Canada.
"That was absolutely a beautiful crop," he said of the
earlier harvest, adding that he did not expect any reduction in
exports due to Alberta's wheat quality problems.
(Reporting by Rod Nickel in Winnipeg, Manitoba; Editing by Tom
Brown)
((rod.nickel@tr.com; 1-204-230-6043; Reuters Messaging:
Twitter: @RodNickel_Rtrs))