Crop pricing

[mustardman]

So then Charlie none of us here in pulse and durum country do any Marketing of our products. We might tell ourselves that to make us Feel Individually Important.
But what we are really doing is Taking a price that is offered. Not what the grain cos are willing to pay but a price that IS OFFERED

[mbdog]

Bucket...I don't grow durum...only listening/watching with interest as to what has happened this season. My question...ever wonder how many times durum price to farmer was held back? Can anyone tell me what their net to farmer high was prior to this year? Don't know if enough volume to establish specific futures instrument... haven't got a clue...but we now have a cash/perhaps market driven history developing which is a good thing.

[charliep]

By a matter of definition, a bid is a price a buyer is willing to pay. An offer is a price a seller is willing to sell for. The reason we are having this conversation is because western Canadian farmers are actively looking at US prices and comparing them to local values. I note that a number of private newsletters have taken recent North African busines and backed off to a western Canadian price.

Did single desk obtain a better price because of Canada's market share/CWB ability to market all durum? You guys can have that discussion of history. Durum is flowing to the market better. Decisions about carryover are a farmers decision/not a single desk one.

MGEX has also tried to open a durum contract but failed - no volume. Too concentrated an industry on the buyer side and no market market to provide the necessary volume.

[bucket]

Charliep

Exactly there is no workable market for Durum.

But some transparency to the players would help.

[bucket]

In North Dakota the durum commission tracks pricing and they report the trend to their members. No such thing in Canada.

Our saskatchewan wheat commission is more set on arguing with ritz's advisors - the wcwga.

BTW everyone, I sold my durum early and made good on my contracts, was happy with the price because I signed the contract. And made adjustments as required because delivering a 3 durum on a 2 contract was going to get expensive.

But there has to be a better way than being a constant price taker. It really is no different than the old way.

[mustardman]

mbdog net price of $12 in 2008 or 09 and yes the board took all of it

[charliep]

The southern Alberta 1CWAD 13 protein in 2007/08 was about $12.50/bu. In 2007, western Canada produced about 3.7 MMT of durum. About 3.1 MMT was exported in 2007/08 (year of the big run up in spring wheat prices including durum) with a resulting carryover of 820,000 tonnes.

If you look at the period of 2004/05 to 2013/14, durum carryovers exceeded 2 MMT in 4 of 10 years with one year over 3 MMT.

In 2013/14 (with all the transportation challenges), western Canada exported a record 4.8 MMT tonnes of durum out of a record 6.5 MMT crop resulting in a carryover of 1.8 MMT on July 31, 2014.

[charliep]

Here is good article on durum prices. I went back to my notes from last Friday and actually only 12.3 percent of the 2014 crop has graded 1 or 2 from the CGC harvest. Likely a little higher percent but still under 20.

[URL="http://www.producer.com/2014/11/little-durum-fetching-top-price/"]durum prices[/URL]

[foragefarmer]

Charlie

If your going to play that type of game, start listing all factors that were involved in each individual year you listed as to why there was carry-over.

Shipping problems, North African crop, other exports offering discounts, farmers not wanting to sell, etc etc.

Charlie, you have to start being a little more objective in what you post. I'm sure you have proven to your supervisors that you have carried the anti- CWB torch long enough.

[bucket]

Charliep

Do you see what the commissions in North Dakota do?

Wouldn't it be nice to have the commissions do that in canada?