With spring seeding just weeks away farmers are watching what's happening in the global marketplace, especially with India’s tariffs on pulses and Italy’s labelling policy on durum.
The policy means that Canadian durum going into Italy would now have to be segregated and labelled which increases costs to Italian millers and processors.
Marlene Boersch with Mercantile Consulting Ventures says the situation in Italy is worrisome as buyers have backed off:
"People have been trying to contract at 16 cents - probably not very successfully, it's a little bit low to make ends meet really - so that's where I see a substantial reduction in acreage, and as I said before, I think it's needed as well."
She sees Italy’s move as a trade barrier because it brings domestic prices up.Italy is the second largest buyer of Canadian durum wheat following Algeria.
While numbers vary overall market analysts are predicting a drop in Pulse acreage for this year of anywhere from 15 to 25 per cent.
A key reason for the change is the ongoing tariff situation and oversupply in India.
Boersch says farmers will likely shift that acreage into Canola, Wheat and Durum.
"We figure that right now about a two-per-cent increase on wheat and a three-per-cent increase on durum I think Agriculture and AgriFood is expecting a five-per-cent increase for each. We're a little bit lower there because I don't believe in the very high decreases on the pulse acres, so that will affect wheat invariably, so we have slightly different estimates there."
Source : Steinbachonline