First off, I apologize for some errors that crept into the delivery table on this page. The table has been corrected.
Now, on to other business.
Agriculture Canada expects farmers will reduce pulse and special crop acreage and seed more of the old standbys of wheat, barley, canola and flax.
We won’t know for sure what farmers are thinking until April 24 when Statistics Canada will release its survey of planting intentions.
But the federal agriculture department last week released its thoughts on seeded area as part of a larger report that also included crop budgets.
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The department expects the biggest change from last year will be in canola. It sees seeded area at 10.695 million acres, up 1.15 million acres or 12 percent from last year due to prices relatively stronger than other crops and expected low carryout.
It also sees more flax area, rising five percent to 1.8 million acres, again due to returns that are expected to be better than other crops.
Barley area is expected to climb by 3.2 percent, or about 408,000 acres, to 13.12 million due to strong feed demand and good malting barley prices.
Spring wheat area should climb by 2.6 percent, or a little less than 500,000 acres, to 19.64 million.
But durum area is expected to drop two percent, or 121,000 acres, to 6.03 million because the premium over spring wheat is expected to be less than in recent years.
Agriculture Canada expects rye to increase to about 600,000 acres, an increase of 53 percent, but it doesn’t explain why. Oats could climb 1.4 percent to 5.58 million acres.
Area seeded to pulse and special crops is expected to decrease by about nine percent to 6.79 million acres.
Dry pea area is expected to decrease about five percent.
The area seeded to lentils is expected to drop by about 10 percent. A return to near-normal yields will increase lentil supplies and pressure global prices lower.
Chickpea area is forecast to decline about 35 percent, with a shift to the desi type due to the high risk of producing the kabuli type.
Area seeded to mustard seed is expected to decrease by about five percent, while canaryseed area is forecast to remain unchanged.
Summerfallow area in 2003 is expected to reach a record low of 8.5 million acres.
