August 17, 2011
Australia's 2011-12 canola output forecast decreases
Dry weather in New South Wales and insect damage in Victoria prompted the Australian Oilseeds Federation on Tuesday (Aug 16) to decrease canola production forecast by 3.9% for the current crop year to 2.49 million tonnes.
If realised, this would be 16% higher than actual production of 2.14 million tonnes in the crop year ended March 31, the federation said in a monthly Crop Report.
Most of New South Wales has experienced four consecutive months of below-average rainfall, which has weighed on the crop outlook, it said.
Australia exports most of its canola output to Europe, where it is used to produce biofuel, and strong growth in the value of exports has provided a fresh income stream for growers in recent years.
Canola output averaged 1.54 million tonnes a year in the last five crop years, while exports in the five marketing years to October 30 will likely averaged 922,000 tonnes a year, according to the government's chief commodities forecaster, the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences.