Hursh Consulting & Communications Inc.

According to market analyst Chuck Penner of Leftfield Commodity Research, there have been a number of interesting developments in the grain markets over the course of this crop year. In field peas, there has been a complete turnaround in the ending stocks situation. Yellow pea exports have been amazingly brisk meaning we’ll end the crop year with low stocks – the exact opposite of the previous year. The demand for yellow peas has been so strong that they’ve seen higher prices than green peas, which is unusual. In the last couple months, Penner notes than peas have been moving to Spain and China rather than India. While pea exports have been strong, the pace of lentil exports has declined in recent months. Penner says that’s worrisome and he’s forecasting a big carryover of lentils, most of which will be low quality. On canola, Chuck Penner says we’ve seen a record pace for exports. We’re also seeing the largest domestic crush ever with the new crush capacity that has come on stream. One of the interesting changes in the canola market is that China has emerged as a big customer for canola meal. Previously, the U.S. has taken the lion’s share of our meal. I’m Kevin Hursh.