These are the questions of the day that market analysts Bruce Burnett and Jerry Klassen answered during their presentations on the first day of Ag in Motion 2025:
Bruce Burnett
What’s the crop look like this year?
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Especially in the south we’ve missed the rains. I did a little crop tour on the way to Ag In Motion, driving from southern Manitoba through Saskatchewan and into southern Alberta. There’s definitely areas in stress. Everyone on the Prairies need rain — say an inch or two — and cooler temperatures in the 20s over the next couple of weeks and some sporadic rain will help. It’s going to make a big impact, but for crops in the south, even this won’t help. It’s not going to save them, they’re destined for lower production. Durum will see about 400,000 tonnes lower production, down to 5.5 million tonnes. It should support prices. For spring wheat and canola, I am expecting close to normal overall, with some dry pockets. Barley is actually going to be up slightly. Will it be a bin buster? No. But we’re really looking at a good solid crop from the central to northern regions.
Jerry Klassen
What do you look at to understand cattle markets?
The cattle market is unlike grain. Two things are very specific. First, a one per cent change in consumer income equals a one per cent change in price of beef. Secondly, demand in inelastic. A small change in supply has a huge influence on the price. That’s what we’ve seen this past year, we’ve seen prices skyrocket. Small change in supply, huge change in price.
