Pulse weekly outlook: Strong demand supporting pea prices

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Published: November 18, 2020

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File photo of a pea crop south of Ethelton, Sask. on Aug. 1, 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

MarketsFarm — There has continued to be a strong demand for peas, as demonstrated by data from the Canadian Grain Commission.

And that has been supporting price increases, according to Marlene Boersch of Mercantile Consulting Venture Inc. in Winnipeg.

“The overall demand has been very, very good,” she said.

In the most recent export data from the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) that’s country-specific, nearly 730,000 tonnes of peas had been exported by the end of September, with 87 per cent going to China. That compares to 606,000 tonnes a year ago, of which 79 per cent went to China.

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Boersch noted a good portion of Canada’s pea exports to China have into that country’s feed market.

In the latest weekly report from the CGC, producer deliveries of peas were 1.66 million tonnes after 14 weeks into the 2020-21 marketing year. That’s about 20.5 per cent more than the same point in 2019-20. Exports have exceeded 1.29 million tonnes, up by almost 36 per cent. Domestic disappearance of 53,600 tonnes was a pinch below that of the previous marketing year.

During the last month the price for green peas climbed $1.50 per bushel, to $9-$10.50, according to Prairie Ag Hotwire. Prices for yellow peas increased 75 cents/bu., to $7.90-$9.

Feed pea prices have risen as well, with a gain of $1 in Manitoba at $8.25/bu. In Saskatchewan, prices were up 55 cents at $6.35-$7.25; in Alberta, peas increased $1.05, to $7.28-$8.40.

— Glen Hallick reports for MarketsFarm from Winnipeg.

About the author

Glen Hallick

Glen Hallick

Reporter

Glen Hallick grew up in rural Manitoba near Starbuck, where his family farmed. Glen has a degree in political studies from the University of Manitoba and studied creative communications at Red River College. Before joining Glacier FarmMedia, Glen was an award-winning reporter and editor with several community newspapers and group editor for the Interlake Publishing Group. Glen is an avid history buff and enjoys following politics.

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