Canada is a world leader in pulse production and export, for now. But pulse crop markets worldwide are growing and changing and Canada’s major competitors have their eyes on the prize.
“Canada is falling seriously behind our competitors in terms of commitment of resources to research … . On the marketing side we are a long way behind,” said Lyle Minogue, board chair for Pulse Canada and a Saskatchewan producer.
Researchers, producers and agrologists attending last week’s Pulse Day 98 at Saskatoon’s Crop Production Show repeated the warning that Canada and Australia are going to be competing head to head for pulse markets before 2005 and the Canadian industry should prepare.
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Pulse Canada was formed last year to improve market and product development. It plans to work with Canadian embassies, commodity groups, feed grains marketers, the CIGI and the Canadian Wheat Board to sell Canadian pulse production abroad, say officials.
“Farmers on the Prairies need to realize their competition isn’t the neighbor down the road, the guy in the next province, but rather growers elsewhere in the world,” said Gordon Bacon, president of Pulse Canada.
Australia spends $28 million annually on pulse crop research, using $8 million from a producer checkoff and $20 million from government.
Canada spends just $6 million a year in the area. France, a traditional dry pea exporter, spends $20 million on research. The United States, spends just $4.3 million but also has the considerable resources of the U.S. federal and state departments.
“On the marketing side we are again a long way behind the (American producer associations) with their legendary resources and budgets devoted to market development and maintenance. With offices around the world they are able to meet and maintain contact with customers in a way that we can only dream of,” said Minogue.
Australian growers are forming regional associations to develop agronomics and markets for their pulse crops. Soil erosion and the need for more efficient farming practices have caused growers to move to zero and minimum tillage strategies that require rotational crops such as pulses.
“Australia still lags behind Canada in pulse development but they are gaining ground rapidly. They are generously funding the industry … . They often state they want to overtake Canada in pulse crop production and exports,” said Ray McVicar, of Saskatchewan Agriculture. He recently toured Australian pulse research projects and said they are staffed by young, enthusiastic scientists who want to gain market share from Canada.
Pulse Australia is developing a nation-wide quality assurance program known as Certified Pulse Australia. The program will guarantee product standards including chemical residue levels, foreign materials and occurrence of disease and insect pests, making the crops more consistent and appealing to buyers.
Europeans have in the past noted that Canadian feed grain products are more variable in quality than sources in Eastern Europe and Australia, and contain five percent dockage, which is seen as too high.
Transportation problems
International opinions of Canadian rail and port systems are low, says Minogue. He noted Philippine hog producers have been impressed with Canadian International Grains Institute feeding trials.
“But how could you get them through Vancouver?’ they would ask. The feed mills in the Philippines do not have large storage facilities. They need regular shipments on time. They know about and are constantly reminded by our competition about our tie-ups in Vancouver,” said Minogue.
Australia lags Canada in pea development, since researchers there have concentrated on a colored flower and seed coat pea for the Indian food market. A new goal in that country is to create a white flowered pea that will compete with Canadian varieties.
Scientists in Australia have transferred the gene responsible for tolerance to the herbicide Liberty (glufosinate ammonium) into lupins, peas, lentils chickpeas. The resulting varieties will lower the cost of production to growers there.
The Indian subcontinent, handy to the Australian producer, is a large market for pulse crops such as lentils and chickpeas. Research in Desi varieties is ahead of Canadian work.
Turkey, a major lentil exporter, is producing fewer lentils for export and this has created a new market for the Australian crop. Still a minor crop for Australia, the green lentil is expected to be a favorite of producers within the next 10 years as new varieties are released.
Production of new varieties of red lentils created at the International Centre for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas in Syria, has taken off in Australia with 80,000 acres harvested in 1997. Again Canada lags behind.
Ascochyta blight still remains one of Australia’s major challenges. Serious insect pests and viral diseases have kept pulse production in check in the island, leaving Canada with its cold winters some advantages, but research is narrowing the gap.
