Modest Improvement in lentil Demand

VANCOUVER - Mar 10/12 - SNS -- Lentil markets finished the week's trading on a firmer note against a modest improvement in export demand for Canadian green lentils.

Markets are also gaining some support by underlying worries about moisture conditions in western Canada. Both short and long term forecasts are looking for below normal precipitation and above normal temperatures for much of Saskatchewan. This has generated worry there will be near drought conditions in the region this year, which could lower yields.

Worries about the potential for a drought in western Canada this year were underscored by speakers at the recent Commodity Classic. They said there is evidence an El Nina event is building rapidly, now that the La Nina weather event is weakening. La Nina events are often associated with below normal precipitation and above normal temperatures in western Canada, as well as parts of North Dakota and Montana. This has the potential to lower average yields for this year's field pea and lentil crops. As beneficial as such weather conditions can be for chickpea crops in the region, they can increase the percentage of tanned lentils harvested. There is no guarantee weather will evolve as predicted.