Canada Markets

Statistics Canada reported on Wednesday that Canada's total farm cash receipts in the first quarter of 2016 reached $15.535 billion, up 3.9% from last year and for this period, second only to the record receipts reported for the first three months of 2013 of $15.729 billion.

Canada's crop receipts were reported at $8.955 billion, up 12.2% from last year although below the record set for this period in 2013 of 9.536 billion. Crop receipts as a percentage of total receipts are reported at 57.6% for the first quarter, up from 53.4% for the first quarter of 2015, while also second to the 60.6% reached in the first quarter of 2013. Over the past five years (2011 to 2015) the average of quarterly crop receipts as a percentage of total receipts was 53.6%, 50.5% over the past 10 years and 45.1% over 25 years.

Crop receipts fell year-over-year in just two provinces in the first three months of 2016: Newfoundland and Ontario. Receipts in the major producing provinces of the country ranged from a 3.4% drop in Ontario from the first quarter of 2015 to an 18.6% year-over-year increase in Saskatchewan. Alberta was second at 14.9% increase, Quebec was up 12.9% and Manitoba was 5.8% higher.

Given a number of major crops, the year-over-year first quarter drop in receipts showed losses in durum receipts (1.2%), wheat (.4%), oats (22.1%) and flax (35.8%). Offsetting these losses was a 32.4% increase in barley receipts, as well as gains in soybeans (3.9%), canola (9.2%), corn (16.4%), lentils (79.5%) and peas (119%).

The attached chart highlights the change over time in the quarterly receipts reported for both peas and lentils. In the first quarter of 2001, the combination of dry pea receipts and lentil receipts accounted for 3.3% of the country's total crop receipts, 2.1% for lentils and 1.2% for peas. During the 15-year 2001-to-2015 period, the average was 6%, while the first quarter of 2016 saw lentils account for 7% of Canadian crop receipts while peas made up a further 4.4% for a total of 11.4%. This is down from the 17.5% reported for the last quarter of 2015, but the second highest level seen in Statistics Canada data. This comes due to a combination of volume and prices.

**

DTN 360 Poll

This week's question asks how you would best describe the start to the crops seen in your area in 2016. This poll can be found at the lower-right of your DTN Home Page.

We thank you for sharing your thoughts on this and past polls.

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

Follow Cliff Jamieson on Twitter @CliffJamieson

(ES)

© Copyright 2016 DTN/The Progressive Farmer. All rights reserved.