Gerald Martens figures he broke even on the sunflower crop he grew last year.
He grossed about $150 per acre and spent just as much on seed, fertilizer and other costs.
The farmer from Kola, Man., isn’t discouraged, however. He plans to grow sunflowers again this year. He said last year’s crop was hampered by a hard frost in May and a glut of rain in June.
“I’m just trying to grow something I hope will make me money,” said Martens, who seeded 160 acres to sunflowers last year.
Read Also
Russian wheat exports start to pick up the pace
Russia has had a slow start for its 2025-26 wheat export program, but the pace is starting to pick up and that is a bearish factor for prices.
Martens was able to glean some information about the sunflower industry at Manitoba Ag Days in Brandon last week. Clarence Leschied of Keystone Grain Ltd. offered an overview of the industry in Manitoba.
Leschied expects global consumption of sunflowers to top 400,000 tonnes in the 1998-99 crop year, based on predictions by the United States Department of Agriculture. He suspects consumption will outstrip supply due to growing demand in countries such as China.
Manitoba seeded 125,000 acres of sunflowers in 1998, with more than half of that geared toward the confectionary market. Leschied expects the acreage to increase this year, although growth will be hampered by the availability of seed for planting. Most of the hybrid seed planted in Manitoba comes from California, where suppliers are having trouble meeting the seed demand.
Leschied described the interest in growing sunflowers as “tremendous” in Manitoba.
Besides the growing demand for confectionary seed, sunflower processors are also finding a rising market for oil varieties. Western Canada doesn’t have a crushing plant for sunflower seeds, but they are in demand as bird feed.
“Bird food is a huge business,” Leschied said.
“With our aging population, it’s the ‘in thing’ to do.”
When trying to decide whether to grow oil or confection varieties, Leschied said there are several things to consider.
- The oils sell for less, but usually yield slightly higher and cost less to spray.
- In terms of harvest moisture, the average chance of a dry harvest with confection varieties is 10 percent compared to 60 percent for the oils.
- The confections normally take longer to mature, with 95 days being the average compared to 65 to 94 days for the oils.
Leschied advised growers to talk with prospective buyers before deciding what to seed. Growers should also investigate how well different varieties have fared in field trials and test plots. Several of those trials were done in Manitoba last year.
One of the challenges faced by sunflower growers in Western Canada is the absence of effective pesticides. Midge were a menace in Manitoba’s Red River Valley last year, although there are measures, such as crop rotations, that can lessen the risk. The insect was not a serious concern outside the valley.
There are no herbicide-tolerant varieties of sunflower available. However, a new pre-emergent herbicide is being developed in the United States to combat a group of broadleaf weeds in sunflower fields.
“I don’t think we’ll see it on the market this year, and probably not next year,” said Rob Park, an oilseeds specialist with Manitoba Agriculture. But efforts are under way to get a minor-crop use permit for the Prairies.
