All quiet on the organic front

By Adam Peleshaty
MarketsFarm/Glacier FarmMedia staff 

While Western Canada and Ontario may be separated by crop variety, weather and distance, both regions’ organic markets were beset by low activity and a hesitance from buyers to commit long-term.

“It’s quiet,” said Scott Shiels, grain procurement manager at Grain Millers Inc. in Yorkton, Sask. “Demand is pretty steady, but flat. There isn’t a lot of pricing available out there for old or new crop on a lot of commodities. Lots of farmers’ calls coming in looking for pricing, but there’s not a lot of tell them.”

• Read more: Organic price quotes: Late March

Shiels added that organic farmers are planning on sticking to their rotations for the most part.

The whole industry looks like it’s kind of waiting and seeing. – Jason Breault

Meanwhile, Jason Breault, manager of RW Organic in Mossbank, Sask., said some buyers are already focusing on new crop, which has brought down some prices. However, because of the volatility of food prices over the past year, some buyers are not wanting to look far ahead.

“They’re waiting to see what’s happening. They believe it’s going to come down,” he said. “(Bids) have come down, but not too much… The whole industry looks like it’s kind of waiting and seeing. (Buyers) are going to buy if they need some, but they’re not going to pre-buy it or speculate on it.”

Ken Richmond, procurement manager for Regina’s O&T Farms and who farms near St. Andrews, Man., repeated Shiels’s and Breault’s observations of quieter organic markets. While premiums haven’t grown, he added that high conventional crop prices have reduced demand for organic products, which have caused some organic growers to switch.

“Some acres got out of the organic use. But with lower prices coming now, maybe they’ll get back into it,” Richmond said. “It just got too expensive. Groceries are up (more than 11 per cent). People had to cut back somewhere.”

Rob Wallbridge, director-at-large for the Organic Council of Ontario is also seeing the organics market settle down in his home province as buyers and sellers sit tight.

“There are definitely indications that prices are coming down, but farmers are still holding out for a price bump and old crop runs out,” he said. “That’s often the case, but we’re kind of stuck in this position where the larger market forces are trending down.”

“There isn’t a lot of pre-product anymore on the market, and if there is, it will be soybeans because the price of feed soybeans have collapsed,” said Harro Wehrmann of Wehrmann Grain and Seeds in Ripley, Ont., adding that corn and feed wheat have seen prices go up recently. “Sunflower, canola and edible beans are very, very steady.”

Despite much of Southern Ontario having little snow cover, Wallbridge anticipates a slower spring that will ramp up once it melts.

Nobody’s real pessimistic about organics… (they’re) being a little bit more cautious about what they’re buying. – Clarence Shwaluk

Clarence Shwaluk, director of farm operations for Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods, said the company’s sales are good despite slowing down this year compared to last. Nevertheless, he believes the organic industry is moving ahead.

“(Companies are) still very much committed to their organic production and I’ve heard a lot of optimism from growers about what they’re going to be planting and looking forward to the spring,” he said. “Nobody’s real pessimistic about organics. It’s just that nobody’s going too far ahead and (they’re) being a little bit more cautious about what they’re buying.”

SaskOrganics hosted its Advancing Organics Conference and Trade Show, as well as its Annual General Meeting, at the Delta Hotel and Marriott in Regina on March 22 and 23.

The event featured 30 companies exhibiting at the trade show and 12 featured speakers discussing various topics including agrology, cover crops, climate change and new technology.

Note: The Advancing Organics Conference and Trade Show was sponsored by Glacier FarmMedia and The Western Producer.