Canada: CWB sums up results of the 2008-09 crop year

The Canadian Wheat Board summed up the results of the crop year ending July, 31 a day earlier.

CWB president and CEO Ian White said the 2008-09 crop year was marked by record bulk exports of Prairie malting barley (1.5 mln tonnes) at record prices for producers.

"The strength and stability of the Canadian grain industry has been a bright spot in the gloomy economic environment over the past year," White said at the CWB's annual crop year-end news conference. The CWB exported about 18.5 million tonnes (MT) of wheat, durum and barley during the crop year, the highest volume since 1999-2000 and up over a million tonnes from last year. CWB net revenue, returned directly to farmers, is estimated at more than C$6 billion – second only to last year's C$7.2 billion.

However, CWB board chair Larry Hill cautioned that poor weather across the Prairies continues to create concern for the 2009 crop. "Looking ahead, it is now quite certain that drought and cold weather will take a toll," said Hill, who farms near Swift Current, SK. "We will need near-perfect weather for the rest of the growing season and into the fall to preserve the quality of this year's crop."

Market volatility and fluctuating currency values continued to pose challenges during 2008-09, but White said the CWB's disciplined year-long marketing approach and sound risk management practices helped inject stability to farmer returns.

"The effects of the global financial crisis began to increasingly influence agricultural commodities as the crop year progressed," White said. "In such uncertain times, the CWB's focus on orderly marketing and careful risk management is particularly valuable."

Producers' pooled earnings for malting barley are the highest ever: C$5.37 per bushel in Saskatchewan, C$5.54 in Manitoba and C$5.57 in Alberta (after freight and handling deductions) – up about four per cent from the previous year.

According to CWB’s second official Prairie-wide crop production estimates for 2009, barley will drop by 300,000 tonnes to 8.6 mln tonnes.

Controlled by western Canadian farmers, the CWB is the largest wheat and barley marketer in the world. One of Canada's biggest exporters, the Winnipeg-based organization sells grain to more than 70 countries and returns all revenue, less marketing costs, to farmers.

31 July, 2009