Lower Than Expected Pulse Stocks
VANCOUVER - Feb 5/12 - SNS -- Inventories of specialty crops were lower than expected on December 31, suggesting unusually large quantities of lentils and peas were consumed on Canadian domestic markets since the August 1 start of the 2012-13 marketing campaign.
In releasing the data, Statistics Canada left last year's production and carry-over numbers unchanged. On-farm inventories of specialty crops were based on a survey of 10,435 farmers between January 4 and 13. Data on commercial stocks of western Canada's major crops originate from the Canadian Grain Commission. Commercial stocks of corn and soybeans are estimated by a Statistics Canada sample of grain elevators in Eastern Canada. Data on commercial stocks of special crops originate from a survey of handlers and agents of special crops.
Total inventories of pulses and specialty crops was 3.235 million metric tons (MT), down 8% from the previous year and down 28.3% from the recent peak of 4.511 million MT recorded on December 31 of 2010. The biggest year over year percentage changes were recorded for chickpea and sunflower, with chickpea inventories double the previous year, while sunflower inventory was almost triple. The biggest volume changes were posted by lentils, down 217,000 MT from the previous year, and field peas, with December 31 stocks down 141,000 MT from year earlier levels.
Inferred disappearance during the first five months of the 2012-13 marketing year was up from last season for peas, lentils and mustard seed; but down for chickpeas, canaryseed and sunflower. Though the inferred disappearance numbers for peas and lentils were higher than they have been in recent years, neither number is unusually high.
Discussing overall inventory levels, Statistics Canada noted that "total stocks of most principal field crops were down compared with the same date in 2011."
Canola stocks amounted to 7.4 million MT, a 23.6% drop from December 31, 2011. It was the third consecutive decline and the lowest level at December 31 for total canola stocks since the same date in 2006. Production of canola fell from 14.6 million MT in 2011 to 13.3 million MT in 2012.
Total stocks of wheat edged down 0.7% from December 31, 2011, to just under 20.7 million MT. This occurred despite a 7.6% increase in wheat production in 2012. Total stocks of durum wheat, down 4.1%, accounted for most of this decline. On-farm stocks for all types of wheat rose 1.7% to 16.5 million MT compared with the same period in 2011. However, commercial stocks fell 9.1% to 4.2 million MT.
Stocks of oats recorded a 19.8% decline to 1.9 million MT nationally, primarily due to a 21.2% decrease in on-farm stocks. This decline mirrored a 15.0% decrease in oat production in 2012.
Total stocks of barley fell 7.2% to 5.1 million MT, mainly as a result of a 6.2% decline in volumes kept on farms. Stocks were down despite a 1.5% rise in barley production in 2012. Barley stocks have been declining for the last four years.
On-farm stocks of soybeans decreased 25.6% to 1.3 million MT nationally, while commercial stocks rose 36.5% to 1.1 million MT, their highest level since 2006. Consequently, total stocks of soybeans fell 6.7% to 2.4 million MT. This occurred despite a 14.7% production increase in 2012.
Total stocks of corn for grain, on the other hand, set a record high of 10.4 million MT, a 9.8% rise over December 2011. This followed record production of 13.1 million MT in 2012. The biggest contribution came from on-farm stocks, which increased 11.0% to 7.8 million MT.
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