Winnipeg – Excessively cold temperatures in Alberta may be causing headaches for both feed grain buyers and sellers, but prices remain relatively steady for what is moving.
The cold weather hasn’t really led to a significant increase in demand, but “it’s definitely made the farmer grumpy,” said Brandon Motz, of CorNine Commodities in Lacombe, Alta.
“In general, the feed grain markets remain relatively flat,” said Motz, noting that grain was still moving as adjustments were made for the weather.
While a solid export program and tight barley supplies were supportive for prices, large corn shipments continue to come up from the United States keeping the barley market steady.
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Corn is steady as well, with activity in the U.S. futures and Canadian dollar typically balancing each other out.
Motz estimated that there was probably as much corn going into rations as wheat and barley combined.
“Corn is definitely a real player, the question is does that continue as we move into spring?” he asked.
“There seems to be lots (of corn) available, so as long as those trains can keep getting filled down south and the elevators can handle the transload, we can keep going,” he added.
Looking ahead to the spring, the tight barley situation and relatively solid prices “could buy a few acres,” according to Motz.
