High nitrogen prices less of a factor for legumes

Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers (MPSG) held its Annual General Meeting virtually Wednesday morning.

MPSG Executive Director Daryl Domitruk commented on the year ahead.

"The price situation is generally positive for most commodities right now. Pulse and soybeans are no exception to that. There's some interesting prices to be had in the market right now," he said. "The pressure that maybe some other crops are under from high nitrogen prices is less of a factor when you're considering a legume like a pea or a soybean. In addition, we have a bit of moisture recharge, it looks like, judging by the snowpack, and that's always positive for all crops. We've noticed that soybeans are susceptible to drought. Any additional moisture will be positive for that crop."

Domitruk also talked about acreage for the upcoming year.

"We are always conservative on our estimates in terms of what we expect in terms of acreage but we are optimistic that these crops, be it soybeans or peas or even dry edible beans have a permanent home in Manitoba and acreage will rise and fall with the market and with weather conditions but we think we've got a good core of acreage that we will continue to work to improve."