Cropping decisions

[wd9]

Am doing a presentation in the country who is canola's best customer. The topic is how farmers choose on which crops to grow.

I personally use crop rotation as the major factor, yet price determines which crops I have in the rotation over a long term.

So I am looking for some direction on how you choose which crops to grow? Is it strictly price, or rotation, or seed availability, input cost, combination of these, different ideas? Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

[crusher]

1)net margin
2) rotation
3) soil moisture
4) weed seed bank

[parsley]

1. net margin

2. customer: demand/committments/relationship

[charliep]

Don't know were fits but soil nitrogen management (inclusion legumes) and issues around herbicide rotation (residue, herbicide tolerance, etc).

[Fransisco]

And the truth shall set you free.

Check out these charts for the answer.

http://www.siemenssays.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/barley-comparisons.pdf

[Fransisco]

Looks like its the boys and girls at 423 main street who have their facts all mixed up.

Again.

[Fransisco]

Here's what the wheat growers have to say about the whole thing.

<b>CWB Continues to Spread False Information on Barley</b>

“The Wheat Board is painting a false picture of the impact of the July 31 court decision that overturned the free market in barley,” says Cherilyn Jolly-Nagel, President of the Wheat Growers. “Farmers were taking advantage of strong world prices before the court decision and would now have access to even stronger prices if the CWB monopoly wasn’t standing in the way.”

The Wheat Growers are responding to a CWB press release issued yesterday which tried to suggest that barley farmers were better off under the monopoly, and falsely accused the Prime Minister of providing inaccurate information in the House of Commons.

The attached price charts, which compare the difference in feed barley prices in the cash market between Montana and Alberta clearly show that Alberta prices rose relative to U.S. prices in the weeks following the March 28 announcement of a proposed free market in barley, and then fell dramatically in the wake of the July 31 court decision overturning the proposed free market. Leading up to the court decision, Alberta feed barley cash prices were trading as much as $35 per tonne above Montana cash prices. As of last Friday, Alberta cash feed barley prices were $73 per tonne below Montana values. In recent years, more than 70% of barley produced on the prairies has been sold into the off-Board feed market.

“The CWB is misleading farmers,” says Stephen Vandervalk, Alberta Vice-President of the Wheat Growers. “It doesn’t matter whether you look at spot prices or average prices, the returns the CWB is providing western farmers are far below the market returns that are being received by U.S. farmers, for either feed or malt barley.”

World barley prices have strengthened considerably in recent months. At Vancouver, the world price for two-row malt barley was $324 per tonne yesterday, according to the Winnipeg Commodity Exchange. Backing this price off to an Alberta farm gives a return of $5.81 per bushel, which is well above the CWB’s projected pooled return on Special Select malting barley of $5.06 per bushel or its fixed price of $4.51 per bushel, basis Alberta.

“We urge the Canadian Wheat Board to immediately stop its campaign of misinformation and partisan attacks,” says Jolly-Nagel. “The federal government should also move decisively to give us marketing freedom as quickly as possible. Many farmers want the ability to capture the strong prices now available on world markets, rather than rely on the phantom projections of the CWB.

[Lifer]

1. Customer relationship (what would you like me to grow for you?)
2. How the Field is (moisture, tilth, weeds, etc.)
3. Market demand
4. What I lke to grow

[wd9]

I think Fransisco is lying because he spelt his name wrong, it really is Francisco.

Neither is lying, they both have goals to achieve and are doing what their respective organizations feel is the best strategy. Flame on.

[chaffmeister]

Can you call it lying when you don't know what you're talking about?

[chaffmeister]

Let me re-phrase that... can you call it lying when THEY don't know what THEY'RE talking about?

(I'm talkin' bout Ritter.)

[Fransisco]

I was wondering when somebody would finally notice. Finger slipped when I originally signed up and as far as I can tell there is no way to correct it.

And sorry I don't buy the everybody is right and everybody is wrong all at the same time theory.

Check the chart again, Harper is right, Ritter is wrong.

[craig]

The CWB is very good at selectively picking the numbers to back their case. Right now they will push the returns they are getting for durum because for one of the few times in history they are the only game in town. While they quote their expected returns for malt they neglect to quote or compare to current U.S. prices or where we would be in an open market. The reality is that while they have been able to get away with this in the past, producers are becoming better informed and access to U.S. and world prices are available everyday. Maybe we need a poll of producers as to wether they think they would rather have U.S. prices or our prices( whose better off). What is implied by the CWB is that they are better marketers of our grain than we are. Recent sales programs by the board would indicate that their record is in fact not likely any better than our own.

[craig]

1) crop rotation
2) balancing acres
3) flex within crop types ( cereals, Broadleaf)
4) land ready for winter wheat
5) Proper long range planning

[Fransisco]

It doesn't look like they're doing that great a job on Durum right now either. The prices in the States are almost double what the pro is.