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(February 24, 2004 - CP) The Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) has some bad news for wheat farmers. It is
predicting prices for all grades of wheat, barley and durum to drop this
year.
Wheat farmer Lil Sabiston let out a cry of frustration when she first
heard the news. She and her husband have been farming in the Kelleher area
for decades, and she says each year has been getting worse.
"That's all the farming community needs to hear right now. Some of
the people are really discouraged and heartbroken because they are
watching their operations going down the tubes," she said.
Given these predictions, Sabiston doesn't expect to seed much wheat
this spring.
Across the province near Spiritwood, Don Voss is taking a different
approach.
"We've already pretty much decided that we're going to summer
fallow half our farm this year and we will be seeding primarily
wheat."
Voss says that even if prices are down, he can make more money growing
wheat than any other crop. He adds it's drought tolerant and costs less to
grow.
The CWB says a higher Canadian dollar is largely responsible for the
low grain prices.
"Sales take place in the international grain trade in U.S.
currency," CWB spokesperson Louise Waldman said, "and then are
converted back to Canadian dollars. So when our dollar is higher —
stronger against the U.S. dollar — that return is much lower."
Waldman says competition from Europe and the former Soviet Union is also
expected to keep prices low. |
