Canadian farmers seen reaping bumper wheat, canola, corn crops

Canadian farmers are expected to harvest more wheat, canola, barley, oats, soybeans, and corn for grain in 2022 compared to last year, according to yield model estimates using satellite imagery and agroclimatic data, Statistics Canada said in a report Monday.

Increased production was largely driven by better growing conditions in Western Canada, where parts of the Prairies had higher-than-normal temperatures and milder weather than in 2021.

"I know farmers are optimistic! Fingers crossed good weather here on out and should be an overall really good year for most," Ryan Riese, the national director of agriculture for the country’s biggest bank, RBC, told Agricensus. 

Canadian agricultural output was crippled last year because of drought and high temperatures in parts of the Prairies.  

"This makes sense given last year in the West we had very dry, and drought like conditions so yields and overall production was down. Farmers still had better than average years given prices were so good," Riese said. 

Three-quarters of the crop in Alberta were rated as in good-to-excellent condition, while conditions in Manitoba were better than last year with near-normal yields, and there are concerns about below-normal rainfall in parts of Saskatchewan, reports from the provincial governments show.

In eastern Canada, there are drier-than-average conditions in much of southern Ontario, while the east of the province and Quebec experience higher-than-normal precipitation.

Wheat output is expected to surge by 55.1% from last year to 34.6 million mt, in large part because of higher yields, which are expected to increase by 41.6% to 51.1 bushels per acre.

The jump in total wheat production is mostly due to spring wheat, which is expected to rise by 57.3% to 25.6 million mt because of gains in both yield and harvested area.

Statistics Canada projected that durum wheat yields will surge by 101.0% to 40.6 bushels per acre, helping propel a 113% increase in production to 6.5 million mt.

"Conditions are very good in about 1/3 of the growing area and poor in 1/3 of the growing area. Most were expecting 6 million" durum production estimate, a Canadian broker told Agricensus.

Canola or rapeseed production is expected to increase 42% to 19.5 million mt this year, because improved growing conditions are boosting yields    

Corn for grain production is projected to rise by 6% to 14.8 million mt, because of both improving yields and an increase in harvested acreage.

Soybean production is projected to rise by 1.8% to 6.4 million mt, while barley production is expected to surge by 34% to 9.3 million mt and oat output is seen rising by 59% to 4.5 million mt.