Saskatchewan’s special crops processing sector is bigger but no more sophisticated than it was in 1999.
An estimated 136 facilities were operating in the province in 2002, up from 118 when Saskatchewan Agriculture conducted its last survey in 1999.
Other positive developments included a 25 percent increase in the number of full-time workers and a 48 percent hike in annual payroll to $31 million.
However, a closer look at the type of work done at the facilities reveals little development from three years ago.
Ninety-seven percent of the processors surveyed are still cleaning, bulk loading and bagging pulse crops. Secondary processing such as colour sorting, splitting, packaging and milling is almost nonexistent.
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That doesn’t surprise University of Saskatchewan agriculture economist Murray Fulton.
“I think that next leap is going to be the real difficult one. It’s the one that historically we’ve always struggled with in the province.”
He said processors have done a good job keeping pace with expanding pulse production, but now it’s time to move up the value chain by building mills and splitting plants.
The problem is that those types of ventures don’t typically receive the kind of farmer support they require. Growers will financially back projects such as inland terminals and other primary processing facilities, but tend to shy away from putting money into more sophisticated plants, Fulton said.
“We’ve really struggled in taking it to the next step.”
He said it’s not clear why this is the case, pointing out that American farmers don’t display the same level of risk aversion as producers in Canada.
One possible explanation is that few research dollars are directed toward that sector.
“We’re going to have to push that side a lot more than what we’ve done,” Fulton said.
Millions of dollars have been spent on pulse breeding and agronomy, but “nothing even close to that” has been directed toward developing more sophisticated processing plants.
In his speech at Pulse Days 2003, Saskatchewan Pulse Growers executive director Garth Patterson said the group plans to address that issue. One of its stated goals is to increase value-added processing and manufacturing.
Interviewed later, Patterson said research money will be spent on things such as developing a better understanding of pulse quality attributes and creating new uses for legumes, rather than on the nuts and bolts side of processing.
The goal is to expand the market for pulses, which will pay dividends for producers and processors. A good example is the work that has already been done on feeding peas to hogs.
Patterson said it’s easier to fund that kind of project because the animal scientists know exactly what they want.
Processors still struggle with that.
“When you get into nutraceutical or industrial uses or new food uses, we just don’t know where to start,” he said.
That’s why Pulse Canada is planning a literature review to help determine what value-added opportunities exist in the industry.
“We want to invest the grower money as wisely as possible,” Patterson said. “That’s why some of this background needs to be done.”
Fulton has heard the industry pay lip service to value-added research before. It may mean it this time, he said, but there are obstacles.
Two years of poor crops have restricted check-off revenue.
“They can’t expand their expenditures quite as fast as they thought.”
As well, he said farmers who foot the research bill are more interested in funding projects leading to better varieties and agronomic practices than enhancing the processing sector.
Patterson said that’s not necessarily true. At recent winter meetings growers told the board to spend more money developing new uses for pulse crops, which he considers a value-added expenditure.
