Glacier FarmMedia – Feed barley bids in Western Canada continue to find some support as the calendar turns to spring, with seasonal road restrictions lending some nearby support to prices.
Spring road restrictions set axle weight limits for vehicles moving on certain roads to reduce the damage heavier loads can cause during the spring thaw period. Grain, livestock and equipment movement can all be affected by the spring road bans, as drivers may need to find alternate routes or haul smaller loads.
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Varied precipitation and warm temperatures were generally beneficial for crop development across Alberta during the week ended July 8, according to the latest provincial crop report released July 11.
Barley is currently landing in Lethbridge, Alta. at about C$270 to C$280 per tonne, an improvement of about C$10 per tonne over the past few weeks.
However, with plenty of U.S. corn still making its way into cattle rations, barley supplies remain large in Western Canada and there may be limited room to the upside. The country’s total barley carryout is forecast to hit 1.00 million tonnes by the close of the 2023/24 marketing year, according to the latest supply/demand estimate from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC). That would be up by 300,000 tonnes from the previous year and the largest ending stocks since July 2018.
Statistics Canada expects planted area to barley will be down by 2.5 per cent in 2024, but with a return to average yields and the large carry-in, total supplies are forecast to rise by nearly a million tonnes to 10.53 million tonnes in 2024/25, with ending stocks increasing to 1.300 million tonnes, according to AAFC.
Meanwhile, the relatively mild winter has meant that feedlots have not needed as much grain as in a colder year. Looking farther ahead, high cattle prices have seen more cows come to market this year, which may result in reductions in feeder cattle next fall.
—Phil Franz-Warkentin is an associate editor/analyst with MarketsFarm in Winnipeg.
