Feed Peas Getting Overpriced

VANCOUVER - Mar 30/07 - SNS -- Feed peas found it increasingly difficult to compete against other ingredients in the face of a strong market reaction to Friday's USDA seeding intentions report.

European feed pea markets ended the week little changed, but corn, soybean and soybean meal markets all posted a weak finish on Friday.

Corn area could be the second highest on record at 90.5 million acres of corn for all purposes in 2007, rising 15% from last year. More importantly, the number was at the upper hand of pre-report guesses by the trade. Surveys showed they expected corn seeding intentions to fall between 86.3 million and 90.76 million acres, with the guess being 87.98 million acres.

That number pulled down soybean values, with markets thinking corn's sudden decline could push land back into beans. Markets are looking for area to end up higher than the 67.1 million acres farmers told the USDA they intend to seed this year. That numbers was at the bottom end of pre-report guesses by the trade, who expected area to come in between 65.9 and 70.8 million, with the average guess being 69.18 million acres.

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