Market News & Headlines >> Canada's Wheat Crop Down 26%

Statistics Canada on Thursday pegged Canada’s all-wheat production at 27.70 million metric tons, down 26.2% from last year’s bin-busting crop and toward the low end of trade expectations.

Trade expectations for Canada’s total wheat crop averaged 28.50 million tons in a range from 26.2-34.5 million, according to a Reuters News Service survey.

Durum wheat production was pegged at 4.95 million tons, below trade estimates averaging 5.20 million tons in a range from 5.00-6.00 million and down 23.8% from last year’s production of 6.50 million tons.

StatsCan pegged canola production 22.6% below last year and also toward the low side of expectations at 13.9 million tons, versus trade estimates averaging 14.5 million.  

Statscan pegged the average yield at 43.6 bushels per acre for spring wheat down from last year’s 53.0 bushels and put the average durum yield at 39 bushels for durum, down from 48.4 bushels last year.  This year’s canola yield came in at 32 bushels down from 40 last year.

The Statistics Canada all- wheat crop forecast was just 300,000 tons below USDA’s recent estimate of Canadian production. Canadian wheat exports are expected to be large this year despite the drop in production as the country has a large carryover of old-crop supplies. USDA pegs Canada’s 2014-15 wheat exports at 21.0 million metric tons, down 1.8 million or 7.9% from last year.