Barley prices softened a little this week after pushing back up to $9/bu FOB the week prior. Most bids now lend closer to $8.50/bu picked up on farm, plus or minus, depending on movement window and location of grain. It’s a similar story to previous price slips, a bit too much corn filling spots that would normally be covered by feed barley, but supply is limited so there should continue to be strength in the market. We have seen a few fall bids on barley, with some malt numbers getting tossed out around at $8/bu delivered in for next year, while interest in feed continues around $6/bu. Feed buyers are not looking to get too deep into those bids so if you’re interested, we would need to firm things up. We are not seeing tons of interest on fall delivery barley contracts on the grower or buyer side at this point in time though.

Heading into the holidays, the pea market has shown very little change in pricing. Yellow peas continue to be priced at $18/bu picked up in limited locations with $17 – 17.50/bu more widely seen. Green peas remain at $16/bu delivered, with $16/bu picked up getting hard to come by. Historically, this is still a great price for green peas and shouldn’t be looked at negatively when compared to yellows, as yellows have a domestic demand that greens don’t. Maple pea pricing hasn’t changed from $18 – 19/bu picked up on farm, depending on location and variety. Looking to new crop, yellow peas in Eastern Sask. are currently bid at $13 – 13.50/bu picked up depending on movement timeline. If you aren’t in this area, we recommend trying out a target at these values.

Canary seed has yet to see a change in pricing over the last month or two. Buyers remain at 50 cents picked up as the urgency for demand seems to have quieted. We will have to wait and see if there will be another surge for more supplies in late winter, or if buyers have bought up enough to cover until then, as per reports. New crop values with an act of God are at 35 – 37 cents picked up, depending on location; a great new crop values to get the first 10 bu/acre on the books while hedging against downside risk, if you haven’t already.

‘Twas the week before Christmas, when all through the market, nothing was stirring, not even a target. Flax supplies filled the US with care, and despite our hopes, the EU and China are just not there. Flax bids at $40/bu are snug in the bed, while visions of new crop are dancing at $24-$25/bu in some buyer’s heads. While seed supplies might still have a cap, call Rayglen Commodities instead of settling for an empty tap. Now please remember that when your phone beeps with a clatter, not to worry, as it’s just our alerts to keep you up to date on the matter!

The oat market seems to have dialed back over the past couple days, which does not come as much of a shock given the values that have been quoted over the past couple weeks. Old crop milling oats might still catch a $10.00/bu FOB bid this week, but we don’t expect product will be moving promptly. If you’re looking for quick movement, there might still be some opportunity to make sales, but we suspect the value to be a fair amount lower. New crop has backed off a bit sitting around that $6.00/bu FOB range with the option to rollover into 2023 should you not make quality or quantity. It’s hard to say if we are going to see that $7.00 new crop price come back around as many saw what was out there and got some good amounts on the books. However, locking in some $6.00 new crop is still a great decision to be made. If you are curious on anything over and above these posted prices call in to discuss, and maybe something higher might trade. Don’t leave yourself in the “should’ve, could’ve, would’ve, but didn’t” situation.

Chickpeas continue in hibernation mode as we move through the final weeks of 2021. Talks with both buy and sell sides have hopes of another tender being announced to try and spark life back into that market, but there is little to support that Christmas wish. When looking at 5 year averages, the current value of the market is above the median and in previous years would have been considered a sell point. With the approach of another seeding season and astronomical input costs, these levels do not trigger for growers. If exports remain slow carry will increase and a potential further decline in bids would be the next logical move. Current bids are seen at  $0.62/lb FOB farm for a #2 or better Kabuli with sample grade at $0.40/lb. New crop bids are still a mystery.

Canola futures have had a positive week with small increases in the nearby months. January futures currently sit at $1016/MT, up from $995/MT last week. Most buyers are basing bids off the March futures, which are sitting at $1008/MT, up from $972/MT last week. Strength in soybeans has been contributing to the recent uptick as well as increases in palm oil and European rapeseed prices. Looking out to new crop, November futures are relatively unchanged this week and sit at $757/MT. Some attractive numbers are being shown around the province for new crop and are worth looking at.

Wheat prices continue to hold strength again this week. A #1 hard red spring wheat with a 13.5 protein fetches anywhere from $12.80 – $13/bu delivered in Central Sask. with the latter pricing for a bit further out movement right now. On the feed side, buyer bids range from $11-$11.50 picked up on the farm. Firm pricing remains in place due to tensions between Ukraine and Russia, US Plains dry weather outlook and of course global production being tight. As of the end of last week, roughly 6.3 MMT of wheat was exported from Canada. This is down an average of 23% over the past three years and excludes durum. Speaking of durum, the Algerian tender that was to be squared away yesterday was postponed to today. So, we patiently await the feedback on that. In the meantime, a 1CWAD continues to see traction around $21.50- $22/bu with new crop indications around $13-$13.50/bu on a 3CWAD or better for early movement.

Buyers seem to be on the hunt for old crop Faba beans and soybeans this week. Faba beans are trading at $14.00/bu FOB farm for feed quality, while an export #2 likely catches a bid around $16.00/bu depending on movement timeframe. Soybeans are trading in that $15.00 to $16.00 FOB farm range. Looking to the spring, both the soybean and faba markets could have trouble attracting acres. At this point both commodities do not fair very well against most other commodities for profitability. The new crop price is not the only thing hindering these markets but is also their historical yield performance compared to other commodities. It will be interesting to see where new crop bids emerge for these two commodities in the new year. We will keep you posted if/when we see some programs pop up!

Lentils continue to plug along at last week’s prices. High end large greens (#1/x2) are trading as high as 65 cents/lb delivered while a regular #2 is bid at 62 cents/lb FOB farm. Reds continue to trade at 45-46 cents on farm for movement in the first couple months of the new year. The new crop market is still pretty quiet on both the red and large green front, but buyers are willing to entertain offers. The indicated new crop red price right now is quoted at 30 cents FOB with a September through December delivery window, giving you a ballpark of where to start offering. We’re not really seeing any solid new crop on small or large greens bids this past week; however, buyers are interested in locking up medium green lentils out of the U.S.

Mustard will go into the Christmas and New Year season with strong footing.  We continue to see new crop being signed this week and many conversations are being had about the outstanding numbers being offered for old crop as well.  Spot yellow and brown mustard are now both trading at the $1.35/lb FOB range, or higher, while oriental of any variety should continue to catch the $1.00/lb range FOB farm.  No change in new crop values this week; yellow remains in the mid 70’s and new crop brown is bid in the mid to high 60 cent/lb range. These are excellent starting points for 10bu/ac with an act of God included.  Buyers also have strong interest in signing oriental acres up and bids may push into the 70 cent/lb range depending on variety and movement. As mentioned before, it is critical to call your merchant to get up to date information and come up with a marketing strategy. Seed is still available, which includes delivery to your yard. January could be busy on seed, so be sure to talk to us.

Rayglen Market Comments are for informational purposes only. Rayglen Commodities and its agents or employees shall not be liable for any loss or damage suffered by any person as a result of reliance on any of the contents contained within these products, whether such loss or damage arises from negligence or misrepresentation or any act or omission of its agents or employees.