MarketsFarm — The chickpea market in Western Canada is undergoing a correction, according to the manager of a pulse buying and processing company in Saskatchewan.
With the exception of Desi chickpeas, all varieties of the pulse have seen prices go down two to five cents per pound over the past month, according to Prairie Ag Hotwire data. Nine- and 10-millimetre Kabuli chickpea prices have declined 10 and eight cents/lb., respectively, over the past week. However, eight-mm Kabuli prices have increased by five cents/lb.
Colin Young, manager of Mid-West Grain at Moose Jaw, said it was well-publicized that last year’s dry conditions curtailed chickpea production and tightened supply in Canada, the U.S. and Turkey. He now thinks chickpea buyers may have overheated the market.
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“When you saw farmgate prices crossing 50 and in some cases 60 cents/lb., that was not correlated with actual demand and actual pricing,” said Young. “The market itself has been on a slow and steady rise from August until now. What you’re seeing is chickpea bids coming more into line with where the market actually was this whole time.
“From where I sit, I see the chickpea market as being sideways to firm and as it relates to bids to the grower, I think that what you’re seeing is a curtailing of Canadian purchasers speculating on what the market will do.”
While lack of supply had previously fueled chickpeas’ price rise, he said, prices could increase again on the strength of demand.
However, farmers are hanging onto their crops, holding out for higher prices. Chickpea prices are between 14 and 27 cents/lb. higher than last year, according to Prairie Ag Hotwire data.
Trading had been extremely light in the fourth quarter of 2021 and growers are looking for a specific price on which to participate in the market, according to Young. Prices are still historically high, but he added that they could also hinge on what’s to come in a few months’ time.
“There’s one significant event that has to unfold in terms of a price future for chickpeas and that’s India’s crop,” Young explained. “India’s crop should harvest in March… That crop really will dictate the future of chickpea prices.
“If India has a major production problem, that should lead to strengthening chickpea prices. If India has an average to significant above-average harvest, that will probably signal some weakness.”
— Adam Peleshaty reports for MarketsFarm from Stonewall, Man.
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