October 29, 2009

Adverse weather conditions continue to keep farmers from wrapping up this year's canola harvest in western Canada, with market participants estimating that up to 20 percent of the crop may still be out in the fields.

A crop specialist with the Canola Council of Canada recommended that farmers make every effort to get the harvest done in the fall, weather permitting, as the crop will not fare well in winter.

John Mayko, senior agronomy specialist with the Canola Council of Canada, said the harvest progress was highly variable, with some areas of the Canadian Prairies nearly complete, while other areas still have up to 50 percent of the canola waiting in the fields. He said harvest progress was behind the most in parts of northern Saskatchewan. Given projected yields, and the acres remaining to be harvested, he agreed with trade estimates that there were 1.5 million to 2.0 million tonnes of canola unharvested.

Of the fields not yet harvested, the quality is highly varied, depending on when the fields were gathered, said Mayko. While some fields are harvested straight with a combine, most canola is first cut and laid in swaths to cure for a week or two before farmers finish the process.

Fields that were swathed in late September or early October, immediately before the weather turned cool and wet, will probably have bigger quality problems, said Mayko.

The wet conditions that are hampering the canola harvest in most areas are making it difficult to use combines. Farmers must now either wait for the straw to dry down enough to allow it to go through a combine, or wait for freezing temperatures, which would also allow for harvest progress, said Mayko.

Because of the lateness of the season, Makyo said it was unlikely that the canola would dry down to optimal harvest levels. He said the Canola Council was now recommending producers harvest what they can and then look at drying the canola as soon as possible. He noted that the higher the moisture content, the greater the risk of spoiling in storage.

Letting the canola stay in the fields during the winter for harvest in the spring is one option for producers unable to get on their fields. However, Mayko said quality would likely be downgraded if there is snow on the swaths for any period of time. Mould and rodent faeces would also cause downgrading.

"We're encouraging people that if you got a chance, take it off now, because you can't t count on it being worth anything in the spring," said Mayko.