Canola gains may lie in the north

In 2014, the Canola Council of Canada set a national canola yield target of 52 bushels per acre, which would mean an annual production of 26 million tonnes.

Eight years later, it seems like the target is out of reach.

Yields have increased since 2014, but across the Prairies the average yields were in the high 30s or low 40s in 2022, nowhere near 52 bu. per acre.

“Average canola yields vary, with a 20 to 60 bu. per acre spread across much of the province. The provincial average yield at 42 bu. per acre is in line with the 10-year average for Manitoba,” said a Manitoba Agriculture crop report in October.

Further west, in September Alberta Agriculture estimated provincial canola yields at 38.8 bu. per acre, about 13 bu. below the 52 bu. target.

The 2022 growing season is just one year and the results aren’t a disaster. However, the provincial yields and average yields don’t tell the whole story about canola and the council’s plan to boost yields.