June 26, 2013
Canada cuts rapeseed planting in favour of wheat
Canada's farmers cut rapeseed plantings by 1.8 million acres to 19.7 million acres, the first decline in sowings of the rapeseed variant in seven years, although the decline in rapeseed planting was smaller than the 2.4 million-acre drop in plantings indicated in a survey of growers in March.
Canadian growers have been turned off the rapeseed crop after a weak harvest last year, sapped by poor weather and the impact of high level of rapeseed in crop rotations in encouraging the spread of pests. However, the switch by Canadian farmers to plant wheat rather than rapeseed was less extreme than initially expected.
At the yield of 0.75 tonnes per hectare forecast by Canadian farm officials this year, and a crop abandonment rate of 1.9%, Tuesday's (Jun 18) sowings data implies a crop of approaching 14.6 million tonnes, roughly 450,000 tonnes higher than the agriculture ministry currently foresees.
The extra rapeseed sowings have come in part at the expense of wheat, of which farmers have planted 25.9 million acres, 700,000 acres fewer than initially expected, if still a historically high area.
The seedings data implies a crop of more than 28.5 million tonnes, factoring in agriculture ministry yield and crop abandonment assumptions, well above last year's result. However, it would fall some 800,000 tonnes short of the figure which the farm ministry estimated was on the cards if growers stuck to their original sowing plans.
The wheat sowings figure was also some 300,000 acres short of the level than expected by investors, and helped prompt a small uptick in Minneapolis spring wheat, which stood 0.4% higher at US$7.88 ½ a bushel in morning deals. The great majority of Canada's wheat crop is spring wheat, and is being largely relied on to support world supplies of high quality
grain this year, Macquarie has cautioned. Rapeseed futures for November stood 0.4% lower at CAD555.30 (US$528) a tonne in Winnipeg.
Growers also sowed more soy than had been projected, an increase of nearly 440,000 acres to a record 4.59 million acres.
