Some farmers may get a higher price for their canola in the future, thanks to changes to the grading system.
The Canadian Grain Commission is relaxing the tolerance levels for damaged seed, other than distinctly green and heated seed.
As a result, some seed that would previously have been downgraded to No. 2 Canada will instead fall into the higher-priced No.1 grade. Similarly, canola that might have been discounted to No. 3 will be graded No. 2.
“There will be some positive benefit to the producer from this,” said Rob McGregor, past-president of the Saskatchewan Canola Growers Association and a member of the Western Grain Standards Committee that recommended the change.
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“There are times when it will help some growers in some areas.”
Under the new standards for No. 1, the allowable levels of total damaged seed will be increased to five percent from three percent. The tolerance for distinctly green seed will remain at two percent and for heated seed 0.1 percent.
For No. 2, the total damaged seed tolerance is being increased to 12 percent from 10 percent, with green seed remaining at six and heated seed at 0.5 percent.
For No. 3, the total damaged seed limit is being increased to 25 from 20 percent. Green and heated seed tolerances will remain unchanged at 20 and two percent, respectively.
Sprouting main factor
The main degrading factor that shows up in the total damage category is sprouting. Other factors include weathering, discolouration, shrunken or shrivelled seed and insect damage.
The new rules reflect work done by the commission’s grain research laboratory into the impact for those buying the seed.
“We evaluated the effects of sprout damage and determined it wasn’t that detrimental a factor, that we could actually have more than two percent sprouted in a sample and it wouldn’t affect the quality,” said Norm Woodbeck, manager of quality assurance standards for the commission.
He said the new standards were established in consultation with canola crushers and exporters, who agreed they would not cause any problems in terms of oil or meal quality.
Sprouting can result in elevated levels of enzymes and free fatty acids, which can be a problem at high levels, but not at the generally limited levels at which sprouting usually occurs in the Canadian crop.
“Given that sprouting is pretty localized, the overall effect on export shipments is going to be minimal, if any,” said Dave Hickling, vice-president of canola use for the Canola Council of Canada. “We may not see any change in total damage.” The main impact, he said, will be to put a few more dollars into more farmers’ pockets.
“Any time you have an opportunity to change the grading standards to make them more producer-friendly without affecting quality, that’s a good thing,” he said.
