Manitoba Oat Production Drops In 2021

Oct 18, 2021

It was a tough year for Manitoba's oat crop.

Jenneth Johanson is president of the Prairie Oat Growers Association (POGA).

"We're hearing reports of production being down about 30 to 35 per cent throughout the province, compared to the last five years," she said. "There has been some variability in test weights and thins, there's been some higher incidences of thins. Due to the drought, there were some areas, like the Interlake, that were severely impacted. Well above the 35 per cent reduction in production."

One positive is the high price for oats that we're seeing on the markets.

"There were some producers that managed to take advantage of the higher commodity prices on a portion of their production," noted Johanson. "In those instances, perhaps the impact of the drought won't be as devastating. The ones that will really hurt are the ones that couldn't fulfill their contracts in full. Those producers are unfortunately going to have some challenges."

Johanson says prices for other commodities are also high, which will create a lot of competition for oat acres in 2022.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.