“Being somewhat resentful of the place of our province in the country is just standard,” said Charles Breton, the executive director of the Centre of Excellence on the Canadian Federation while presenting survey results at the Western Canada Economic Forum in Winnipeg on Jan. 22.

The resentment index

The centre calculates a “resentment index” based on opinions around each province’s distinct culture or identity, if residents feel they are treated with adequate respect by other provinces, if they get a fair share of federal spending, have enough influence in decision making, and so forth.

The index goes from negative six (not resentful) to six (very resentful). Canada’s average sentiment hovers around one, or slightly resentful. The most recent survey — published in July — showed resentment dipping slightly.

The 2025 survey spoke to 5,391 people.

Of the western provinces, B.C. is the least resentful. Between 2022 and 2025, sentiment has hovered between one and two with little variation.

Manitoba’s sentiment has fluctuated between about 0.5 and two, Saskatchewan between two and three and Alberta has also ranged between two and three on the index.

Newfoundland and Labrador is the most resentful province overall, with residents expressing feelings of being disrespected, excluded and misunderstood by the other provinces, according to a report from the centre published in July. It ranges between two and three on the resentment index — generally closer to three.

Nova Scotia’s resentment index sat around or above two before sliding to one in 2025. Quebec moves between one and two.

Where are the angriest people?

Ontario is the exception — skating along near zero since 2022.

“You ask them about the place of their province in the country, they don’t even understand the question,” Breton said.

Each person who responds to the survey is also given a score on the same resentment index.

When graphed on a curve, Alberta residents form into two peaks — one grouped toward the highest point on the index, and one grouped toward the lower side.

Breton noted that while Alberta is not the most resentful province overall, it seems to house the most resentful people.

The same pattern shows up in Saskatchewan, though it is less pronounced, the July report said.

The report noted that while political trends in Alberta may suggest growing resentment, tracking the index over time shows that resentment is actually down.

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Donna Dawson of Ag Drone Canada based in Nipawin, Sask., says the reaction to the eVTOL drone has been fun to watch.

“The reactions here have been amazing,” said Dawson. “Lots of ‘wows.’ ”

The eVTOL is rated to haul a 210-pound payload up to 450 metres into the air at a maximum speed of 44 m.p.h. for up to 30 minutes at a time.

It can be flown remotely, like any drone, or from onboard.

“It’s set up with dual redundancy, so if you lose one motor, you won’t fall out of the sky; you’ll still be able to fly it and put it down safely,” says Dawson.

“The flight controls have triple redundancy, and if all that fails, it also has a ballistic parachute that’s built into the frame.”

Dawson says the eVTOL is primarily for recreational use, but it also has search and rescue capabilities that may be of interest to emergency responders, with infrared cameras mounted on it. In such a scenario, the drone could be flown from its base station to rescue someone in a hard-to-reach location.

The eVTOL will have parts manufactured in both Canada and the United States, and it will be asembled in Nipawin, she added.

Cost is expected to be around US$100,000.

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“The lentils are starting to come in,” Mosnaim commented.

He noted that he had yet to hear as to the quality of those already off the fields.

Lentil combining in southeast and southwest Saskatchewan were 10 per cent complete as of Aug. 5, according to that province’s crop report. Harvesting of the pulse was six per cent done in the west-central region, while most of Saskatchewan’s lentil crop was still standing. Over in Alberta, the combining of pulses was expected to get underway this week.

Prices for Laird lentils have been hit the hardest, according to Prairie Ag Hotwire. The large green lentils lost 16 to 18 cents per pound over the course of the week ended Aug. 12. Prices ranges from a low of 29 cents/lb. delivered. for number three Lairds to 52 cents for number twos.

Also, French number one lentils were down seven cents on the week at 42.5 to 48 cents/lb. Red lentils pulled back one to four cents at 21 to 31 cents/lb.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada projected the 2024/25 lentil harvest to reach 2.5 million tonnes in its July report, up from 1.67 million the year before. Ending stocks are expected to jump to 450,000 tonnes versus 50,000 in 2023/24. That would see the stocks-to-use-ratio rise seven-fold to 21 per cent.

AAFC’s next report is scheduled to be released on Aug. 20. Also, Statistics Canada is set to issue its model-based estimates of principal field crops on Aug. 28.

The post Pulse Weekly: Lentils starting to feel harvest pressure appeared first on Farmtario.

The recent heatwave across Western Canada has adversely affected canola yields in the drier areas of the region as well as later planted crops as canola blooms were unable to withstand the heat.

Tryhuk said canola is currently too expensive to effectively compete with the Chicago soy complex, Malaysian palm oil or European rapeseed.

“China is the only game in town,” Tryhuk stated, noting that other major customers have slashed their canola imports in 2023/24.

The most recent data from the Canadian Grain Commission, which as of May, has China’s canola imports at 3.84 million tonnes in 2023/24, down from 4.22 million the previous year. Japan reduced its intake to 725,000 tonnes from 961,700; Mexico chopped its import to 466,000 tonnes from 1.08 million; the United Arab Emirates slipped to 155,700 tonnes from 169,000; and Pakistan was at zero versus 267,000 tonnes this time last year.

“We’re not doing anyone any favours by being up at $680,” Tryhuk remarked, pointing to a strong prospect of good soybean yields in the United States come harvest time.

Mixture of hot temperatures across the Prairies and short covering by the speculative funds combined to drive canola well passed its resistance levels. But the Canadian oilseed, once very competitive with its rivals had shifted to a rather unfavourable position.

Tryhuk suggested 2024/25 ending stocks could be much higher than the current forecast by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada of 2.10 million tonnes.

The post ICE Canada Weekly: Attention on canola to soon turn from yields to demand appeared first on Farmtario.

Most chickpea varieties dropped three cents per pound during the week ended March 22, reducing increases from last year, according to Prairie Ag Hotwire. Statistics Canada projected 400,311 seeded acres for 2024, 84,015 more than last year.

Jake Hansen from Mid-West Grain Ltd. in Moose Jaw, Sask. said uncertainty over yield and quality from India, one of the largest buyers of Canadian chickpeas, is responsible for the recent weakness in the market.

“It’s always difficult to judge what India is actually producing. Typically speaking, this time of year is when India comes to market with their chickpea crop,” Hansen said. “There always seems to be a little bit of a lull this time period because India’s production is hitting the market.”

He added that he has seen prices fall by more than three cents/lb. recently.

“(One company) was offering 54, 55 (cents/lb. for Kabuli chickpeas) a month ago, maybe five weeks ago. We just recently bought (product) at 48, 49 cents delivered,” Hansen said. “The market’s soft. It’s quiet.”

While domestic movement of chickpeas are faring well, exports are “falling off a cliff”, according to Hansen.

“We’ve got two containers here, two containers there, etc. all through the spring and summer, but exports have significantly slowed down,” he said.

Looking ahead, Hansen warned that any excitement about more chickpea acres this spring in Western Canada may be tempered by quality issues.

“Our thought process is there will be more acres planted in 2024 … But if the yield isn’t any better, or it falls off because of a drought and it’s worse, then who’s to say we don’t have similar quantities in the grain bin than we did in 2023?” Hansen asked. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada is projecting a miniscule 5,000-tonne carryout for chickpeas at the end of 2023-24, which compares with 28,000 tonnes the previous year.

He said that timely rains in April and June, as well as a dry fall will create ideal growing conditions for this year’s chickpea crop.

“It’s going to be a waiting game on Mother Nature (as to) what she gives us,” Hansen said.

—Adam Peleshaty reports for MarketsFarm from Stonewall, Man. 

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“We’re seeing continued pressure on the availability of spaces for both feed wheat and (feed) barley. It’s very hard for producers to find quick movement for feed wheat or feed barley,” she said. “It seems like buyers are buying out of a deferred position and are going into the summer months more than March/April now because they have very significant coverage for the short term.”

She added that Statistics Canada’s Dec. 31 grain stocks report, released on Feb. 8, had some effect on prices. Barley stocks increased by 300,000 tonnes from one year earlier at 5.5 million. However, corn stocks declined 4.8 per cent at 11.3 million tonnes, while wheat stocks were down 10.3 per cent at 20.7 million.

Some prices Leclerc has seen are C$5 per bushel picked up for March/April feed barley in Vegreville, Alta., as well as C$4.80/bu. in Davidson, Sask. For feed wheat, C$7.40/bu. picked up was also reported for Vegreville.

Ongoing corn shipments from the United States continued to be a primary factor in feed grain prices going down.

“A lot of buyers have covered themselves with corn for the short term and they’re looking to buy out for longer terms as well,” Leclerc said, adding that there is only a “five cent carry-in” for spring feed grain price premiums, less than usual.

She said that it’s rather difficult to say where prices will go over the next few weeks.

“It’s very hard because some areas of Alberta are very dry. Farmers are hoping that will impact the market,” Leclerc explained. “Outside of the smaller Alberta market, there’s not a lot of concern for drought coming out of the States. It’s not affecting the corn market, which is impacting our barley market. It’s so hard to say that we’ll see a weather rally if we’re not seeing local drought. It’s very hard to know if we’ll see any change in what we’re seeing right now.”

As of Feb. 14, the high-delivered bid for Alberta feed barley was C$6.42/bu., down 33 cents from last month and down C$2.94 from last year, according to Prairie Ag Hotwire. In Saskatchewan, the high-delivered bid was C$5.50/bu., 25 cents less than last month and C$2.25 less than a year earlier. In Manitoba, after a 15-cent monthly decline and a C$2.19 yearly decline, the high-delivered bid was C$5/bu.

For feed wheat, Alberta’s high-delivered bid was C$8.71/bu., down 41 cents from a month ago and down C$3.27 from a year ago. In Saskatchewan, it was C$8.38/bu. which was steady from last month but C$2.63 lower than last year. In Manitoba, the high-delivered bid was C$7.49/bu., up three cents from last month but down C$3.26 from a year ago.

— Adam Peleshaty reports for MarketsFarm from Stonewall, Man. 

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“The feedlots have been good at slowly buying on the way down, so coverage is set – aside from some spot movement here and there,” said Brandon Motz, owner of Cornine Commodities in Lacombe, Alta.

Delivered barley into southern Alberta is currently priced around C$297 per tonne, which is down by about C$10 per tonne the past month, according to data compiled by the Alberta Wheat Commission.

“We haven’t seen crazy demand come into the market,” said Motz, adding that while the highs for feed barley were likely in, there was still room to the downside.

Adding to the lack of demand for domestic barley are the continued imports of corn from the United States. Export data for the week ended Jan. 25 shows that Canada has already imported 510,100 tonnes of U.S. corn during the marketing year that began Sept. 1. That compares with 196,300 tonnes of accumulated imports at the same time the previous year. There are an additional 305,800 tonnes of corn on the books slated to move later in the crop year – up by about 50,000 from the previous year’s outstanding sales at this time.

Motz expected the amount of unsold grain still on farm was above average for this time of year, with some farmers likely now showing some regret over not selling earlier. Some of those producers will continue to hold, and maybe build more bins, while others will be selling to generate cash flow ahead of the spring.

While the overall bias was pointing lower, Motz said the generally dry Prairie conditions could eventually provide some support. “If we stay dry through seeding… guys will be a lot less inclined to clean out the bins,” said Motz.

— Phil Franz-Warkentin is an associate editor/analyst with MarketsFarm in Winnipeg. 

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Total barley production across the Prairies was down by 10 per cent on the year, at 8.707 million tonnes, according to the CGC. Average barley yields were placed at 61.3 bushels per acre in Western Canada, which was down from 70.5 bu./ac. the previous year and the 10-year average of 66.4 bu./ac.

AAC Synergy was the most popular malting barley variety seeded in Western Canada, while the area seeded with CDC Copeland continued to decline. The popularity of newer varieties, such as AAC Connect, CDC Fraser and CDC Churchill, increased noticeably, according to the CGC.

The malting barley was generally of good quality, with average protein levels steady on the year at 12.3 per cent. That compares with the 10-year average of 11.9 per cent.

The average test weight was 65.0 kg/hL, which was lower than the previous year’s average (66.7 kg/hL) and the 10-year average (66.9 kg/hL). The average 1,000 kernel weight was 46.8g, which is higher than last year’s average (45.0g) and the 10-year average (45.7g).

The newer varieties, such as AAC Connect, AAC Synergy, CDC Fraser and CDC Churchill that have kernels larger than AC Metcalfe and CDC Copeland, contributed to the overall high average kernel weight.

Soil moisture and precipitation were lacking in many areas through the growing season but a stretch of relatively cooler temperatures during a portion of July helped relieve some crop stress, as did haze from wildfire smoke, according to the report. Harvest operations started relatively early in August, as crop development was ahead of normal across a good portion of the Prairies due to the hot and dry conditions throughout much of the season. Occasional rain in August did lead to some sprouting and prevented the harvest from being completed in a timely manner.

— Phil Franz-Warkentin is an associate editor/analyst with MarketsFarm in Winnipeg.

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The latest long-range seasonal forecast from Environment Canada, released Tuesday, calls for a 40 per cent chance of above-normal temperatures from November through January across most of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, with an even higher probability of warmer weather across the rest of the country. Only a small pocket of southern Saskatchewan was not forecast to experience above-normal temperatures.

Longer-range outlooks going into February/March/April call a high probability of warmer temperatures for all of Canada.

Precipitation is expected to be normal across most of the country heading into the winter months, with a drier bias in northern Saskatchewan and parts of the Peace River region.

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Canada is enduring its most destructive start to wildfire season, with about 4.8 million hectares — an area larger than the Netherlands — already burnt.

Forest fires regularly occur in the summer but the scope of the current conflagration — and its early arrival — are unprecedented. On Monday, some 449 fires were burning across Canada, including 219 out of control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre.

“If you look at Western Canada, it’s completely covered by the smoke and that continues into Tuesday,” federal meteorologist Gerald Cheng told reporters on Monday. “The risk for smoke is very high because the winds are really transporting the smoke throughout Alberta today and even into Tuesday.”

The fires in Alberta are sending plumes of smoke eastward over Prairie provinces Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

Edson, a town of about 8,000 about 190 km west of Edmonton, and its surrounding area have been under evacuation orders since Friday. TC Energy said two compressor stations and a gas storage facility near wildfires at Edson had to be shut down on Saturday.

Environment Canada’s Air Quality Health Index put Edmonton and oil sands hub Fort McMurray in the “high risk” category.

Quebec has seen its number of active fires diminish to about 110 on Monday from nearly 150 last week that sent a veil of smoke over the U.S. East Coast.

Cheng said some rain was in Quebec’s forecast on Monday, but not enough in the places with the most active fires.

“On top of that, only showers are in the forecast with thunderstorms, lightning — especially later for the week,” Cheng said, noting the risk of lightning igniting new fires.

Nearly 5,000 firefighting personnel are deployed in Alberta, Nova Scotia and Quebec, and Canadian Defence Minister Anita Anand told a briefing on Monday that more army members will be deployed to Edson.

The fires have also forced Canada’s forestry industry to shut down sawmills, driving up lumber prices and setting production back for months just as housing construction has slowed due to higher costs and a tight labour market.

— Ismail Shakil is a Reuters news correspondent in Ottawa.

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