April 25, 2013

Canada may increase wheat seeding by 12.3% this year as they reduce the amount of rapeseed they plant.

Canada, the world's second-biggest wheat exporter behind the US, will plant 26.6 million acres of the grain this year, up from 23.7 million in 2012, the Ottawa-based agency said. Spring-wheat acreage may rise 14.4% to 19.4 million acres, while durum planting could increase 9.1% to 5.11 million. Rape seeding will fall 11.1% to 19.1 million acres, according to the Statistics Canada survey.

"The biggest reason we are looking at more wheat is because rapeseed is so stressed that we need crop rotations to come in," said Brian Voth, an analyst at Agri-Trend Marketing Inc. in Winnipeg, Manitoba. "We need to go back to more of a typical oilseed-cereal rotation, and that's been lacking."

Wheat futures on the Minneapolis Grain Exchange have fallen about 7% this year, partly on speculation that global production will increase.

Rapeseed prices have climbed about 5% since the start of this year on the ICE Futures Canada exchange in Winnipeg. Barley planting will probably fall 2.2% to 7.24 million acres, according to the report.

Statistics Canada said it surveyed 13,805 farmers about their intended plantings between March 25 and April 3.