WINNIPEG (CNS) — Agriculture Canada predicts fewer mustard acres across the Prairies, but the executive director with the Saskatchewan Mustard Development Commission has a different take.
“Based on the calls I get and the feedback I get, I think there’s people that are looking at mustard and think it’s a pretty good option,” said Kevin Hursh.
Farmers could be looking for alternatives crops to grow with the price for pulses down due to an ongoing import tariff issues with India.
The Outlook for Principal Field Crops report released by Agriculture Canada on Feb. 16 predicted the average price of mustard would increase due to lower supply in Canada. However, it also predicted a decrease of mustard acres. The report predicted slightly less than 260,000 acres of mustard to be planted, down from 2017, when 385,000 acres were seeded. In 2016, 525,000 acres were planted.
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Last year’s mustard crop was also affected by drought. Most mustard is grown in southern Saskatchewan and southern Alberta, which were two of the areas hardest hit by the drought.
“Acres dropped and then that area got hit hardest with drought and production was down 40 or 50 percent and it created a shortage, whereby the current price for mustard is very attractive,” Hursh said.
Yellow mustard is currently sitting at 35 to 36 cents per pound, brown mustard at 44 to 46 cents per lb. and oriental mustard at 31 to 32 cents per lb.
“Certainly, the best prices were when the contracts initially came out and then, as they did more and more contracting, those prices have continued to come down,” Hursh said.
Prices could affect the types of mustard grown as well as the acreage.
Over the past few years, there has been less brown mustard planted due to lower prices, which has led to more demand for the variety. Hursh said he wouldn’t be surprised if people switched to brown or yellow mustard at the expense of oriental.
“We tend to go from boom to bust. People read the price signals and assume that’s the way the future’s going to be,” he said, adding the tables could turn and a year from now farmers could be rushing to grow oriental.
