Driving through Manitoba, it's likely you may have noticed less sunflower fields spanning the countryside. According to Manitoba Agricultural Services Corporation's seeded acreage numbers as of mid-July, confectionery sunflower acreage dropped about 55 per cent this year.
MASC's estimates show non-oil sunflowers dropped by about 34,000 acres to just over 28,000 acres total, while oil sunflowers showed a smaller decline of 3500 acres, bringing the crop to about 34,000 acres this year.
"Primarily a lot of that's going to be due to pricing," says National Sunflower Association of Canada executive director Darcelle Graham, "there wasn't the difference in price spread there normally is between oil and confections, and in addition to that, obviously the competitive crops and the acres that are coming in for other crops, such as soybeans."
Graham says 2011 marked the lowest area seeded to sunflowers in Manitoba in recent years. Since that time, acreage had been building up, and Graham says they were hoping for consistent overall sunflower acres in the province, noting it was a bit of a shock to see acreage drop so low.
"But it's cyclical, and we're hoping to see our acres grow next year, and hoping price will win back the acres," she adds.
Source : Steinbachonline