The flax market had another quiet week, with some bids even softening a bit more. Right now, most of our Canadian flax is destined for US markets, while shipments to China remain subdued due to that market being dominated by Russian & Kazakh supply. Their prices are much cheaper in comparison to ours according to reports, and China is willing to take the discount in value vs quality for the time being. The only thing that seems to be keeping the market above $20 right now is growers’ reluctancy to sell at current values. Today, brown flax is priced at $20 – 21/bu FOB farm pending location and freight costs. There has been very little yellow flax interest lately, but a few trades have been put on the books with values ranging from $25 – 30/bu FOB farm depending on location, movement, and variety. It looks like we will have to wait and see if the new year will shake any new business out of the flax market.

Buyers continue to show interest in lentils, but values seem to have softened off a bit compared to previous weeks. We suspect that purchasers have now bought enough product from the market to put themselves in a comfortable position, but that doesn’t mean posted prices aren’t attractive. Red lentils are currently trading in the $0.33 – $0.34/lb FOB farm range with a bit of interest in higher priced product posted on firm target. Moving over to the green lentil world, posted bids on large greens are trading in that $0.52 – $0.53/lb FOB farm range, while small greens are now bid around $0.50/lb FOB farm. It’s much of the same scenario as red lentils; firm targets continue to grab buyer attention. Bids are still coming in at profitable levels and growers should consider hedging their bets. Getting a certain percent locked up and moved is a smart play right now, giving some cash flow back to the farm. There may be an uptick to these prices with uncertainty over the Australian crop, however, this is still an unknown. If buyers get stuck on the wrong side of a long position, the drop off could be fast and hard.

Pea bids are mostly sideways this week with green peas hovering around $14.00/bu FOB farm and yellows unchanged, still quoted at $12.50-$13.00/bu picked up. Pea values in India have lowered as the Rabi season approaches, so we could see some of this reflect in Canadian bids near term. The focus over the past couple of weeks has centred around green and maple peas on the buy side. With green peas showing a tighter supply number, we have seen a boost in bids and an increase in destinations. For those with maple peas in the bin, call us for pricing options as that market has had a strong rally over the last several weeks. Bids remain variety dependent, but all types are being looked at. The yellow pea market relies more on China, which has had little demand as of late. Australia’s pea stocks are very tight with the majority of supply used domestically, so this could offer some support as we move into the new year.

Mustard continues to show strength in the market for another week. Values on all types of mustard (brown, oriental, and yellow) sit over $1.00/lb FOB farm and show no signs of weakness. It is highly recommended that growers call our office as prices fluctuate, and we have seen offers trigger well above the posted bids; up to $1.25/lb in some cases. New crop pricing is strong with steady trades over the last couple of weeks as sellers lock in the first 5-10bu/acre. Call our office and we can help you pencil in values that show a great return per acre. We continue to book certified mustard seed with delivery to your yard as seeding plans are being made. With yellow, brown, and oriental mustard in the top three categories for your best returns, signing some acres at these once again historic values only makes sense. Reports suggest mustard supplies in the US and Canada are comfortable, however importers are rebuilding supplies after the drought year in 2021/22. There is a risk to ignoring these high values if exports drop back to more normal levels.

Buyers continue to show interest in all types of chickpeas with #2 large Kabulis still catching bids at $0.55/lb FOB farm for Dec-Jan movement. As a reminder, these bids are basis max 10% 7mm sizing; anything over that 10% mark will be subject to a discount, so knowing what you are working with ahead of time will save you a potential headache down the line. If you are looking for quicker shipping options, a few opportunities have popped up, but values will come at a slight discount. Buyers have also been on the hunt for feed chickpeas with bids hovering around $0.35/lb picked up on the farm. If your product falls in between #2 and feed, an offer is a great way to show the buyers that you’re a seller. Transitioning to our readers south of the border, values sit right around 38c/lb USD picked up. Freight and currency are volatile right now, so keep an eye on this market.

The canaryseed market is flatline again this past week. Buying interest is present, but bids have stayed steady ranging from 40-41c/lb picked up on the farm with the latter for Dec-Jan movement. Final crop reports have shaved another 15,000MT off Canadian production according to Sask Ag. The StatsCan numbers are a little more generous in the yield which means the actual yield number is still questionable. Typically, the canaryseed market follows a relatively predictable trade pattern, but this year, with no reported exports out of Thunder Bay, and slower than usual spring movement, that could be disrupted. It could be a slow-moving target as opposed to peaks and valleys we are used to if fall movement doesn’t increase.

Milling oats see another quiet week with a few outliers looking for supply, but only slightly increasing values. For the large part, bids are sitting around $4.00-$4.50/bu delivered with small opportunities at $5 in the SE of Sask. Again, no one is jumping up to sell their bushels at these levels. Feed oat bids also maintain tone around that $3.75 to $4.00/bu FOB farm for Dec-Jan movement. Some growers are contemplating a sale as feed with no quality risk deductions, especially considering the lack of milling demand and the narrow spread in value. The best practice today is to put targets out to the market to test the waters at levels deemed tradable. Call your broker for more info.

Revisions in today’s WASDE report and recent export sales have soybean futures up from opening values. Local bids are location dependent and range from $17.25-$17.75/bu FOB farm. Dry bean prices are beginning to firm up as the market passes through a period of somewhat typical seasonally normal price pressure. Dry bean harvest reports out of Nebraska state later than normal harvest and yields being under longer term averages. Aussie La Niña rains still loom large over harvest quality setbacks; the impact on the faba production region is still unknown. Local bids with export quality #2 faba bids being in the range of $13.00-$13.50/bu FOB farm and feed quality values are near $9.50-10.00/bu FOB farm location dependent.

Wheat prices maintain similar to slightly lower levels this week with buyers showing delivered plant bids on #1 CWRS, 13.5 pro, at high $11’s per bushel in the nearby and low $12’s per bushel into the spring and summer months. Firm offers a little over market show some effectiveness in the fast-paced ups and downs of this wheat market as it moves largely sideways in no where near a straight line (i.e., up, then down, back up again, then down, repeat). Feed wheat prices remain strong at $10.50 to $11.50/bu in the yard with the freight cost factor being the biggest reason for the wide range out there. Quick movement on feed wheat is very hard to come by as buyers are having real struggles getting access to trucks. Durum prices are showing a $13.50 to $14/bu range this week on #1 quality depending on movement timeline and area.

Barley markets remain flat in pricing despite relatively widespread assumptions of an upcoming price correction. Bids still range between $7.25 to $9.00/bu FOB farm depending on freight costs and movement timeline. Barley prices, net to the farmer, are comparable to last year, but it’s the gross price that has the feed lots looking at other sources. Why? Those options may have cheaper freight costs. Barley sales this year so far are 3X over last year. This is likely the reason why we are seeing most bids pushed out to the new year for delivery. If you’re looking for a slightly better price than being offered, having a firm target gives you the best opportunity. This gives the buyer an opportunity to push the end user and find the best freight out of your area.

Canola markets are showing strength today after seeing a couple days of weakness. At the time of writing, we see January futures up nearly $12/MT with March not far off posting $10/MT gains. Canola has been reported as undervalued by some in the industry and is gaining strength back after a correction in veg oil markets. A rally in soyoil is also likely helping canola find its firmer tone today. Looking a little closer to home, some local canola purchasers are starting to fill up nearby shipping windows, now only looking for product into the new year. This seems to be isolated for now, but may be a sign of what’s to come across other purchasers. Basis levels remain relatively unchanged and bids hover around $20.50/bu, give or take pending shipping window and location, delivered to plant.

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.