Canada Markets

Alberta's bi-weekly Crop Report released on July 15, as of July 12, shows a very modest change in crop condition, with the Good-to-Excellent (G/E) rating for major crops estimated at 75.2% G/E, down from 76.2% estimated as of June 27. This compares to the five-year average of 65.2% G/E and the 10-year average of 69.2%.

Condition ratings for all crops by region range from unchanged in the North West Region to down 1.6 percentage points in the Central Region. The two-week period led to a 0.8 percentage point increase in spring wheat to 82.7% G/E, a 1.4-point increase in durum to 64.4% G/E, a 0.8-point drop in barley to 75.1% G/E and a 2.8-point drop in canola to 68.2% G/E.

The spring wheat rating is the highest seen for this week in seven years or since 2016. The oat rating at 81.6% G/E is also the highest reported since 2016. Of the other crops shown, including durum, barley, canola and peas, ratings are well-above the year-ago level while below the condition rating for mid-July 2020.

Since the cut-off data for this report, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's agroclimate maps shows central and southern regions of the province having reached highs in the mid-30 Celsius range, although were below the highs exceeding 37 C experienced in southern Saskatchewan during the July 11-17 period. Southern Alberta is seeing widespread precipitation on July 18.

Cliff Jamieson can be reached at cliff.jamieson@dtn.com

Follow him on Twitter @Cliff Jamieson

(c) Copyright 2022 DTN, LLC. All rights reserved.