Glacier FarmMedia — Feed grain bids in Western Canada were holding steady in late February, lacking any fresh market moving news.
• Feed barley into the Lethbridge-area feedlots was trading at about C$270 to C$275 per tonne in late February, holding relatively steady with values from the beginning of the month. Feed wheat has also shown little movement, topping out at C$280 per tonne, according to data from the Alberta government.
• Corn imports from the United States were priced at a similar level to barley, with a delivered-Lethbridge price of C$274 per tonne.
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• Seasonal price movement in the feed grains typically sees values strengthen through the spring, as supplies tighten and farmers turn their attention to the next year’s crop.
• Solid export demand continued to underpin the domestic feed market, with more grain moving offshore this year. Canadian Grain Commission data showed 1.9 million tonnes of barley were exported through 28 weeks of the marketing year, up from 1.1 million tonnes at the same point a year ago.
• Country-specific data through December shows China remains the largest single destination for Canadian barley in 2025/26, accounting for just over half of the total export movement. • Australia has also increased its barley exports this marketing year, moving 1.2 million tonnes in December alone, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. China was by far the largest destination, taking 700,000 tonnes of Australian feed barley and about 261,000 tonnes of malt barley during the month.
• Canadian imports of U.S. corn are also up on the year, according to the latest U.S. Department of Agriculture data. Canada has imported 335,600 tonnes of U.S. corn from Sept. 1 through Feb. 19, which compares with 94,000 tonnes at the same point the previous marketing year. An additional 233,500 tonnes are on the books to move later — roughly nine times the outstanding sales at the same point in 2024/25.
• Corn futures in Chicago have trended steadily higher since dropping sharply lower on Jan. 12 in response to a record-large production estimate from the USDA. CBOT May corn hit a session high of US$4.4575 per bushel on Feb. 26 — improving by nearly 20 cents per bushel from its January low.
