THURSDAY, AUGUST 9, 2012
VOL. 90 | NO. 32 | $3.75
A GOOD SPORT |
SERVING WESTERN CANADIAN FARM FAMILIES SINCE 1923
Canola seed losses top seven percent
MAKING HAY WHILE THE SUN (AND MOON) SHINES
CWB predicts large crop in most areas BY BRIAN CROSS SASKATOON NEWSROOM
Western Canadian farmers who are already enjoying near-record prices for cereal grains are also on track to produce one of their biggest crops in years. Bruce Burnett, a weather and crop specialist with CWB, said last week that 2012 production of wheat, durum and barley in western Canada is likely to surpass levels in 2010 and 2011. With the exception of dry areas in southeastern Manitoba and B.C.’s Peace River region, most prairie farmers are benefitting from good growing conditions and ample moisture. Production estimates released by CWB July 31 pegged western Canadian wheat production, excluding durum, at approximately 20 million tonnes, nearly 1.4 million tonnes higher than 2011 and well above the five-year average.
BY BRIAN CROSS SASKATOON NEWSROOM
Canola farmers in Saskatchewan are leaving more than seven percent of their crop in the field, according to a post-harvest study conducted at the University of Saskatchewan. Researcher Teketel Haile said yield losses in a two-year study conducted on 66 commercial farm fields in Saskatchewan during 2010 and 2011 showed average harvest losses of 184 kilograms per hectare or 3.3 bushels per acre. If those losses are indicative of losses in other provinces, Canadian producers could be leaving more than 70 million bushels of canola seed on the ground this year, a loss of close to $1 billion at current canola prices. Total canola acreage in Canada is estimated at more than 21 million acres this year. “Seed loss overall is very high as compared to previously reported values,” said Haile, a graduate student from the college of agriculture. “That is a huge amount of seed bank addition.” Haile’s study examined seed losses in 66 commercial canola fields in the Saskatoon area over a two-year period. Fifty-one fields were swathed before harvest and 15 were straight cut. A total of 16 canola producers participated.
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HARVEST | A GOOD YEAR
Production estimates show 20 million tonnes of wheat
Money on the ground | Producers could be losing nearly $1 billion worth of canola
SEE SEED LOSSES, PAGE 3
P21
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SEE LARGE CROP, PAGE 2
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u|xhHEEJBy00001pzYv$:# AUGUST 9, 2012 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Box 2500, Saskatoon, SK. S7K 2C4
David Abrahamson and son, Layne, gather square bales in a field near Hanley, Sask., to take home to their horses. | WILLIAM DEKAY PHOTO
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CANOLA | SEED LOSS
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PRAIRIE MAN HELPS OLYMPIC ATHLETES