Canadian Ad Commodity Returns Pressured

OTTAWA - Apr 26/06 - SNS -- Canadian farmers continue to receive less for their production than the previous year, with both grain and livestock returns coming under pressure, according to Statistics Canada, forcing a 7% decline in commodity returns from last year.

Prices for livestock and animal products were 7.7% lower in February 2006 than they were a year earlier. This was the third consecutive month of year-over-year decreases, following a year and a half of almost continuous increases.

Prices fell in February for all livestock and animal product indexes except eggs. Losses ranged from 0.8% for poultry to 24.9% for hogs over year earlier levels.

Overall, producers received prices for crops that were 2.6% below levels in February 2005, continuing a downward trend in year-over-year price changes that began in July 2003, according to the Farm Product Price Index. Farmers received lower prices for grains, oilseeds, fruits and specialty crops.

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