Yields vary, harvests near complete

By Adam Peleshaty
Glacier FarmMedia staff

As harvesting operations in the Prairies neared their close, many organic growers in the eastern part of the region were satisfied with crop conditions and yields while prospects were more uncertain in the west.

Ken Richmond, a farmer from St. Andrews, Man. and procurement manager for Regina-based O&T Farms, said the unseasonably warm weather helped crops mature faster.

“(The harvest) has been going pretty good. I think we’re ahead of schedule,” he said. “Yields, surprisingly, from what I’ve heard have been a little bit better than expected…The crops seemed to have certain showers at the right time and (growers) are pleasantly surprised in a lot of places.”

There is less production for organic flax and peas, according to Richmond, but prices for both and others stayed put.

“(Prices haven’t) really taken off at all. I think demand is pretty limited,” he added.

• RELATED: Organic price quotes: Late September

Scott Shiels, grain procurement manager at Grain Millers Inc. in Yorkton, Sask., said that with the oats harvest two-thirds finished, yields have looked “pretty good” so far to go along with decent test weights.

“Quality’s alright. Yields could always be better, but they’re OK for the most part,” he said. “I know a few guys who grow organic rye and they were quite happy with their yields and the wheat quality is good.”

Shiels added that despite strong demand, prices for organic crops stayed relatively steady as conventional prices moved upwards, seeing premiums for organics in the 50 to 60 per cent range. He sees no reason for prices to go down further after the harvest is complete.

“Supply’s going to be alright with demand pretty stable and an OK crop. We’re going to see that supply/demand balance stay pretty stable going forward,” he said. “There are no bearish factors going on in the market right now.”

Some have said their oats have done a little better than their wheat, but it kind of depends on the area. – Jason Breault

Jason Breault, manager of RW Organic in Mossbank, Sask. located 70 kilometres south of Moose Jaw, reported a “close to average” crop with below-average yields.

“Some have said their oats have done a little better than their wheat, but it kind of depends on the area,” he said. “There was extra wheat planted this year. We’re going to have more bushels than we did last year…That’s probably why the price (for hard red spring wheat) hasn’t taken off because there is grain out there.”

While checking in with growers, Organic Alberta executive director Iris Vaisman heard that those in the northern and central areas of the province received much-needed moisture in the summer after a dry spring, providing secondary growth and delaying the end of harvest.

“They’ve been saying that (conditions are) decent,” she said. “It seemed that they made out OK, but it was generally dry across the province. It was kind of spotty across Alberta.”

Dry weather has helped advance harvesting operations in southern Ontario, according to Harro Wehrmann of Wehrmann Grain and Seeds in Ripley, 200 km west of Toronto. The start of the soybean harvest is showing “robust” yields and he hopes for the same for corn and sunflowers.

“The quality that is coming off is pretty good,” he said. “Yields are above-average for soybeans. The rain that we had in August and September is making for a really good fall harvest so far.”