(Commodity News Service Canada) — Increased crush capacity in Western Canada will result in a record amount of canola being processed during the 2010-11 crop year and a jump in the amount of canola oil and meal being shipped from the country, according to a government analyst.
“Right now, I am forecasting that processors in Canada will crush 5.5 million metric tons of canola in my current supply/demand forecast,” said Chris Beckman, an oilseed analyst with the market analysis division of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Winnipeg.
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However, he indicated the current canola crush in Canada is easily on track to hit the six million-tonne level and could even surpass that mark.
The current crush pace record was established during the 2009-10 crop year, when 4.788 million tonnes of canola were processed in Canada.
The new record crush pace will be tied to the increased capacity of processors, he said, noting that Canada’s current crush capacity was estimated to be between seven million and 7.5 million tonnes, which would be up from the six million- to 6.5 million-tonne level seen during 2009-10.
With the increase in domestic processing will be a jump in the amount of canola oil and canola meal exported from Canada in 2010-11, Beckman forecast.
He projected Canadian canola oil exports in 2010-11 would be in the 2.1 million-tonne range, with 1.2 million of that amount heading to the U.S., at least 700,000 tonnes to China and the remainder to a variety of smaller importing countries.
In 2009-10, Canada’s canola oil exports totalled 1.8 million tonnes, of which 1.05 million were sent to the U.S. and 650,000 to China.
Increased biodiesel requirements by various governments continue to grow, creating strong demand for canola oil in general, Beckman noted.
Canada’s canola meal shipments were also expected to jump in 2010-11, he said.
He forecast canola meal exports from Canada in 2010-11 would rise to the 2.5 million-tonne area, of which 1.3 million would go to the U.S., 800,000 to China and 400,000 to Mexico.
In 2009-10, Canada’s canola meal exports totalled 1.85 million tonnes, of which 1.1 million were shipped to the U.S., 200,000 to Mexico and 550,000 to China.
