Farmers encouraged to take part in CGC Harvest Sample Program

Sep 13, 2022

Farmers that signed up for the Canadian Grain Commission's Harvest Sample program should have received their harvest kit in the mail.

Kerri Pleskash is the CGC's Program Manager of Analytic Services at the Grain Research Lab.

This year they sent out 5600 harvest sample kits to producers in Western Canada.

Pleskash says under the program producers send in a grain sample after harvest for inspection.

"Then the producer will get a report at the end. So they'll get an official grade, they'll get a protein value, and you know other testing depending on the commodity they send in. If they send in canola they'll get oil and chlorophyll as well. If they send in any wheat sample, they're gonna get a falling number, DON, and protein value."

She notes at this point its hard to determine the crop quality out there as samples are just starting to come back in.

"We haven't received a whole lot to make a good judgment. But CWRS, I guess 89% so far has been graded #1, but that's based on only 92 samples that we've received so far."

Producers can sign up for the program anytime throughout the year by going to the CGC website.

The Harvest Sample Program began in 1927 and has been running for 95 years.

A lot of producers in the drier areas of the prairies this year have been dealing with a high volume of grasshoppers that have hung on into the harvest.

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