Following national trends, farmers in Alberta are planning to plant more wheat and less canola acres this growing season, the March 2022 principal field crop areas report from Statistics Canada says. Lentils and oat acreage are also expected to increase nationally, while barley and dry peas will decrease.
The report notes the previous crop year was one of the driest on record in Western Canada. While soil moisture conditions are estimated to have returned to normal in some parts of Western Canada, other areas such as southern Alberta remain drier than normal, potentially influencing seeding intentions.
“In addition, domestic and international grain markets are currently facing uncertainty as a result of the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical conflict, which may affect farmers’ planting decisions. Rising input costs for Canadian farmers, including fertilizer and fuel, may also contribute to seeding decisions,” the report says.
At the national level, farmers anticipate planting 25 million acres of wheat in 2022, up 7.2 per cent from the previous year. In Alberta wheat area will rise 6.3 per cent to 7.4 million acres. This is due to higher spring wheat area at 7.9 per cent, while durum wheat area is expected to fall 3.1 per cent to 957,500 acres, the report says.
Even though there are higher prices and strong global demand for oilseeds, Canada’s canola acreage is expected to drop seven per cent to 20.9 million acres in 2022 as farmers shift to alternate crops such as cereals, the report notes. Farmers in Alberta plan to seed 6.3 million acres of canola, down 6.9 per cent from last year.
Nationally barley acres are expected to fall 9.7 per cent to 7.5 million acres in 2022. In Alberta area seeded to barley will drop 3.9 per cent to 3.7 million acres.
Oat acres are expected to increase 16.6 per cent to four million acres nationally. Statistics Canada notes if realized, this would be the highest area seeded to oats since 2008, possibly attributable to higher domestic demand for feed use and exports.
Canadian lentil acreage is expected to increase compared to one year earlier, up 4.2 per cent to 4.5 million acres, however in Alberta acreage is expected to drop by 8.8 per cent.
Farmers across Canada expect to plant fewer acres of dry peas in 2022, with area anticipated to fall seven per cent to 3.6 million acres, the release says.
