Mustard supply evaporates following drought in Canada
Mustard Seed
Canada
Published Jan 15, 2022
Tridge summary
Simply put, 2021 was not a good year for mustard growers. The average yield was about 40 percent of normal and Canadian farmers only produced 50,000 tonnes of mustard seed — a fraction of the typical output. "It's the smallest crop for decades… in Western Canada," said Chuck Penner, owner of LeftField Commodity Research, who spoke at the annual meeting of SaskMustard, held Jan. 13.
Original content
The shortfall of rain and extremely hot temperatures — with 27 days above 30 C last summer in southwestern Saskatchewan — took a severe toll on mustard yields. Saskatchewan Agriculture estimated the provincial yield at 431 pounds per acre. In the southwest, where most mustard is grown, the average yield was 383 lb. per acre. That's a fraction of the 10-year average for the province, of 1,024 lb. per acre. Consequently, total output was way below average. Between 2014 and 2019, Canada produced 120,000 to 220,000 tonnes of mustard seed. With poor production in Saskatchewan and an equally bad crop in North Dakota and Montana, very little mustard is available for buyers this winter in North America. Price is hard to pin down because there is almost nothing to buy. Mustard could be at $1.40 or $2 per lb., which is massive compared to prices in previous crop years of 30 to 40 cents per lb. But the gargantuan prices this winter are almost theoretical. "Compared to previous highs in the ...
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