(Resource News International) — Mustard seed producers across the Prairies are having a difficult time getting excited about the market for their product.
Patrick Ackerman, chair of the Saskatchewan Mustard Development Commission, said the feeling among farmers is a negative one.
“The price of mustard compared to canola is not at the ratio it needs to be,” said Ackerman, a producer at Chamberlain, about 55 km north of Moose Jaw. “Guys are pulling off 30-35 bushel per acre canola crops, and looking at their eight- to 10-bushel mustard crop and going, ‘That doesn’t work.'”
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Elevator deliveries for yellow mustard seed were bringing as much as 23.5 cents per pound, while brown mustard seed was bringing as much as 18.5 cents per pound, according to prices from Prairie Ag Hotwire.
Ackerman said he wouldn’t be surprised to see high-quality mustard seed go up in price, but did not think it would ever reach the 30-35 cent mark.
A key factor in the low prices is Europe not being a major player in the market, he said.
“They planted a lot of mustard two years ago, and last year, so they have big supplies, and we can’t compete on their prices,” he said.
“The biggest thing is Europe doesn’t want our mustard, except for the very, very high-quality stuff.”
Producers are thinking long and hard about how much mustard seed to plant in 2011, because of the poor prices, Ackerman noted.
As far as current harvest operations are concerned, Ackerman said only about 15 per cent of the mustard seed is off the field, and yields have not been all that impressive.
“A lot of producers have been getting about eight to 10 bushels per acre. Shelling and disease have been issues,” Ackerman said.
The quality of the crop has been mixed to this point, he added.
“The quality isn’t bad. The seed is kind of a gray colour, not nice bright yellow. There have been some sprouting issues, so there are some issues with the mustard crop for sure.”
Frost damage has been seen in some of the later-developing crops, he noted.
