The federal agency issued its monthly deliveries report on Tuesday, showing total deliveries last month came to 5.103 million tonnes, up nearly 15 per cent from the previous August.

Wheat deliveries (excluding durum) tallied 2.936 million tonnes last month, rising more than 14 per cent compared to August 2022. Meanwhile those for durum dipped almost seven per cent from a year ago at 313,576 tonnes.

While canola came in 983,337 tonnes, jumping 29 per cent from August 2022, barley fell just over 13 per cent at 407,530 tonnes.

Table: Producer deliveries of major grains, in millions of tonnes. Source: StatCan.

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Oilseed processors in Canada crushed 772,345 tonnes of canola last month, as well as 139,164 tonnes of soybeans for the month of June for a total of 911,509 tonnes of oilseed crush, a decrease of 3,425 tonnes from May and an increase of 114,896 from June 2022. 

The canola crush was a slight increase from the 769,942 tonnes processed in May, with 323,308 tonnes used for oil and 457,628 used for meal. In June 2022, 660,215 tonnes of canola seed were crushed. For soybeans, the June crush was slightly below May’s, which had 144,992 tonnes. In June, 26,409 tonnes of soyoil were produced, as well as 110,017 tonnes of soymeal. In June 2022, 136,698 tonnes of soybeans were crushed. 

Canadian grain deliveries in June reached a three-month high of 4.203 million tonnes, an increase of 1.113 million from May and 1.303 million from June 2022. Most of the deliveries came from wheat, which totalled 2.363 million tonnes, an increase of 784,000 from May. From the June wheat total, 365,256 tonnes were durum, compared to the 198,210 tonnes delivered in May. 

Canola deliveries also increased by 321,773 tonnes in June from the previous month to 1.328 million, while oat deliveries gained more than 64,721 tonnes to 297,979. Rye deliveries added 2,931 tonnes to the June total at 14,506, while 30,783 tonnes of flaxseed were also delivered in June, 9,283 more than in May. However, barley deliveries declined by 69,325 tonnes from May to June to 169,468. 

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In April 2023 more than 3.44 million tonnes of grain were delivered, versus 2.46 million a year ago.

The uptick in deliveries continued to demonstrate the sizeable harvest farmers reaped in 2022. Canola deliveries April-over-April jumped almost 41 per cent at more than 1.22 million tonnes. Those for wheat climbed 30 per cent at over 1.64 million tonnes.

In terms of percentage, the sharpest increase came in barley, which at 285,676 tonnes, almost doubled from April 2022. The smallest uptick was in rye, rising 5.6 per cent at 16,716 tonnes.

Table: Producer deliveries of major grains, in tonnes. Source: StatCan.

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At more than 5.36 million tonnes, those deliveries jumped 85 per cent when comparing January to January.

The spike in deliveries reinforced the significant recovery on the Prairies from the drought in 2021.

The sharpest increases came in durum, which at 660,128 tonnes, soared 257.2 per cent from January 2022, and there was a 150.7 per cent jump in barley at 543,123 tonnes. The smallest uptick was in oats, rising 17.2 per cent at 222,609 tonnes.

Table: Producer deliveries of major grains, in tonnes. Source: Statistics Canada.

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All grain deliveries for October 2022 exceeded 5.43 million tonnes for a 19.3 per cent increase from the previous October.

During last month, total wheat deliveries were nearly 2.64 million tonnes, up 32.3 per cent from October 2021. When excluding durum, wheat deliveries were just short of 2.09 million tonnes, up 28.2 per cent from a year ago.

Canola deliveries were higher from October to October, rising 16.0 per cent at slightly below two million tonnes.

At more than 240,000 tonnes of oats and almost 532,000 tonnes of barley, deliveries of the two dipped in October by 2.1 and 1.8 per cent respectively compared to a year ago. The largest decline in deliveries, percentage-wise, came in flax, falling 65.9 per cent at slightly under 16,000 tonnes.

Table: Deliveries of major grains, in metric tonnes, October 2022. Source: Statistics Canada.

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“Around Lethbridge, they seem to have a good portion done,” said Erin Harakal, trade manager for Agfinity Inc. at Stony Plain, Alta. “Some areas in the north are starting, as well. The Edmonton area, Red Deer… I think a lot more (barley growers) are going to start over the next week or two.”

Harakal added that crop yields appear to be better than in 2021, when much of Alberta — and the rest of the Prairies — was affected by a severe drought. She expects new-crop barley deliveries to feedlots to begin in late September, but bids are already being made.

“Pricewise, we’ve been seeing for September (feed barley) anywhere between $350 to $360 per tonne ($7.62-$7.84 per bushel) delivered in Lethbridge,” Harakal added. “For October and November, anywhere between $360 and $370 ($7.84-$8.06/bu.).”

The high-delivered bid for Alberta feed barley is $7.95/bu., according to Prairie Ag Hotwire, down 80 cents from a month earlier. In Saskatchewan, the high-delivered bid is $6/bu. (down $2 from last month) and in Manitoba, it’s $6.50/bu. (down 68 cents).

For feed wheat, the high-delivered bid in Alberta is $11.16/bu., $1.50 less than one month ago. In Saskatchewan, the high-delivered bid is $9/bu. (down $2 from last month) and in Manitoba, it’s $9.22/bu. (down 86 cents).

— Adam Peleshaty reports for MarketsFarm from Stonewall, Man.

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“They [Cargill] have worked through most of the issues,” Canadian Grain Commission spokesman Remi Gosselin said in an interview Tuesday. “Our understanding at the grain commission is that there should be no issues on a go-forward basis for future deliveries and they are working through previous deliveries to resolve all of the complaints, but it’s going to take sometime to get through each one of them.”

Some farmers who delivered grain starting in August complained Cargill was slow to pay them. Under the Canada Grain Act, licensed primary grain elevators are obliged to pay farmers for their grain immediately if the farmer requests it.

Payment delays followed “the implementation of a new technology system,” Cargill official April Nelson wrote in an email Friday.

“We apologize for the impact this has had on our Canadian grain customers and our teams are dedicated to fulfilling all contracts as soon as possible. We know that this experience is not what customers expect from Cargill.

“We are committed to a high level of service and are in frequent communication with the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) as we navigate this issue, with focused priority on quick resolution for our farmer customers. We ask anyone currently experiencing payment delays to reach out to their local Cargill representative if they haven’t already done so.”

The Western Producer reported on Cargill’s problems Sept. 30.

The CGC was aware of the issue and working with Cargill, Gosselin said in an interview with the Manitoba Co-operator Nov. 1.

“The point we want to make is farmers don’t need to worry about the financial wellbeing of Cargill,” he said. “It’s not that they are going out of business, or having trouble paying producers, it’s more about their internal computer systems having a glitch and they are working on resolving that problem.

“Believe me, if we had any indication of any problem the CGC would be taking action. We have no indication of financial difficulties at Cargill.”

A number of farmers have complained about Cargill’s slow payments on social media.

In a letter Friday to Cargill customers president Jeff Vassart apologized and asked for continued patience.

“Your local [Cargill] team has been working extremely hard throughout this difficult situation and is dedicated to delivering excellent customer support,” Vassart wrote. “They continue to actively communicate the customer impact of these issues to Cargill leadership. Please know we continue to work hard to return to the level of service you deserve.

“If you require an immediate payment, please reach out to your Cargill representative or your Cargill location. We will ensure your payment is addressed as quickly as possible. We will continue to post updates on CargillAg.ca as we continue to work through these issues.”

Unpaid farmers can also call the CGC, Gosselin said.

“Our [CGC] experience has been when we escalate things with them [Cargill] that they resolve the individual complaints in relatively short order,” he said.

“Cargill will be presenting us with a plan on how they will work through all of the outstanding payments. There is open and direct communications with Cargill and we are in direct contact with them.”

Ensuring farmers get paid for ‘regulated‘ grain delivered to licensed grain companies is part of the CGC’s role under the Grains Act.

The CGC regularly audits grain companies to ensure they have enough security posted to cover farmer liabilities. However, the CGC’s payment protection program is time-limited.

After delivering grain, farmers have 90 days to exchange a primary elevator receipt or grain receipt for a cash purchase ticket or cheque. But once a farmer receives a cash purchase ticket or cheque, he or she is eligible for compensation paid from the licensed company’s security for only 30 days, so long as it’s still within the 90 days post-delivery. If not, farmers are ineligible for payments from the company’s posted security.

There’s also a chance the security doesn’t cover all what’s owed to farmers. In that case payments are pro-rated. That’s why the CGC recommends farmers get paid as soon as they deliver grain to an elevator.

— Allan Dawson is a reporter for the Manitoba Co-operator at Miami, Man.

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Many other crops also saw larger-than-expected carryout numbers in Statistics Canada’s principal field crop stocks report as of July 31, 2021, released Wednesday.

According to MarketsFarm Pro analyst Mike Jubinville, the latest numbers have exceeded many trade estimates.

“All of them are a little higher than expected for the most part,” he said. “Some are really close, but generally speaking they’re higher.”

Canola stocks decreased by 48.6 per cent on the year to 1.8 million tonnes as of July 31, their lowest level since 2017. Also contributing to the lower numbers were both a record amount of crushing (up 2.8 per cent, to 10.4 million tonnes) and exports (up 4.9 per cent, to 10.5 million tonnes).

Despite lower wheat production, 2020-21 ending stocks were 5.71 million tonnes, an increase of 3.7 per cent.

Opening supplies were higher than in 2019-20 (up 4.6 per cent to 40.6 million tonnes) and higher commercial stocks (up 7.1 per cent to 3.5 million tonnes) were the primary reasons for the gains, but lower on-farm stocks (down 1.3 per cent to 2.2 million tonnes) and a 10.1 per cent rise in exports to 26.4 million tonnes tempered the increase.

“Spring wheat is maybe one million tonnes higher than what the trade is expecting. Canola is maybe (500,000) tonnes higher,” Jubinville said. “These are relevant in terms of bigger numbers. Game changers, not necessarily, but it takes the bloom off the bullish rose for both of them to some modest extent.”

Ending stocks for barley reached a record low of 711,100 tonnes, a drop of 25.7 per cent from the year before. Increases in off-farm deliveries (up 17.4 per cent, to 5.1 million tonnes) and exports (up 54.8 per cent, to 4.6 million tonnes) added to already declining stocks.

On the other hand, oat ending stocks rose 54.7 per cent to 658,500 tonnes on the strength of declining domestic use and higher opening stocks, which led to increases in both on-farm and commercial stocks. However, oat exports increased 12.2 per cent to 2.9 million tonnes, the highest on record.

Dry pea stocks saw the largest gains out of all Canadian principal crops, rising by 105.6 per cent to 478,500 tonnes as of July 31 compared to the previous year. Higher opening stocks, as well as reduced exports to Bangladesh and India, helped with the gains.

Lentil stocks nearly doubled, jumping by 94.3 per cent to 405,600 tonnes, as declining exports to India, Bangladesh and Turkey kept more of the crop at home.

Considering both peas and lentils are approaching historical highs in prices, Jubinville is skeptical about Statistics Canada’s estimates.

“The peas and lentils, that are probably a few hundred thousand tonnes higher than expected, raise some question marks in my mind about the accuracy in the numbers,” he said.

“To have comfortable levels of ending stocks at the end of the marketing year, that just can’t be. The trade is fighting for those supplies. It doesn’t make any sense to me. There’s something amiss in this report, in my opinion.”

Jubinville also questions the methodology of collecting on-farm old-crop stocks data, adding it should have been done in July for Statistics Canada’s August crop estimate report rather than in May and June in order to get more accurate numbers instead of “extrapolations.”

“I’m a little confused by it,” he added. “This feels a little iffy about what (Statistics Canada) is using here. So I have to take their numbers that they presented at face value.”

Table: Ending stocks for Canadian principal field crops at July 31, 2021, with year-earlier numbers and five-year averages for comparison. Source: Statistics Canada.

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February’s cold snap resulted in grain movement across the region falling below its three-year average.

The most pressing issue has been a shortage of grain to load onto vessels at both Vancouver and Prince Rupert in British Columbia.

“The vessel lineups at both ports have been unusually high throughout this crop year. This is in part because of the heavy demand and partially because the demand has not slowed since last spring,” Hemmes said.

“Also, the railways — while they performed exceptionally well from October through to the end of January, the start was slow, and the system has had a difficult time recovering. These past two weeks have had an especially large impact on vessels as the grain was not available at port, but the vessels continue to arrive.”

The problem will be compounded because of more vessels due to arrive. As of Monday there were 35 vessels at Vancouver and seven at Prince Rupert waiting to be loaded, with a dozen more headed to Vancouver and five on their way to Prince Rupert, he said.

The shortage situation at both West Coast ports was intensified as Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Railways were required to slow their respective movements because of frigid weather that descended on the Prairies.

The number of cars allotted was cut by 31 per cent by CN and 60 per cent by CP, Hemmes said.

“In addition, we saw a decrease in the amount of grain that was delivered by producers in the country, 458,000 tonnes against an average of over 1.2 million tonnes weekly throughout most of this crop year.”

Other than the February cold snap, there haven’t any major delays to rail traffic this winter.

“There have been some derailments through the winter period but none that saw line outages any longer than 24 hours and they have recovered fairly quickly,” Hemmes said.

While Prince Rupert was forecast to get precipitation this week, any delays due to rain or snow haven’t been significant, he added.

— Glen Hallick reports for MarketsFarm from Winnipeg.

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And that has been supporting price increases, according to Marlene Boersch of Mercantile Consulting Venture Inc. in Winnipeg.

“The overall demand has been very, very good,” she said.

In the most recent export data from the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) that’s country-specific, nearly 730,000 tonnes of peas had been exported by the end of September, with 87 per cent going to China. That compares to 606,000 tonnes a year ago, of which 79 per cent went to China.

Boersch noted a good portion of Canada’s pea exports to China have into that country’s feed market.

In the latest weekly report from the CGC, producer deliveries of peas were 1.66 million tonnes after 14 weeks into the 2020-21 marketing year. That’s about 20.5 per cent more than the same point in 2019-20. Exports have exceeded 1.29 million tonnes, up by almost 36 per cent. Domestic disappearance of 53,600 tonnes was a pinch below that of the previous marketing year.

During the last month the price for green peas climbed $1.50 per bushel, to $9-$10.50, according to Prairie Ag Hotwire. Prices for yellow peas increased 75 cents/bu., to $7.90-$9.

Feed pea prices have risen as well, with a gain of $1 in Manitoba at $8.25/bu. In Saskatchewan, prices were up 55 cents at $6.35-$7.25; in Alberta, peas increased $1.05, to $7.28-$8.40.

— Glen Hallick reports for MarketsFarm from Winnipeg.

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