Agricultural News
Interest in Growing Canola Continues to Grow, Jeff Scott Says
Wed, 17 Jul 2013 16:53:48 CDT
Jeff Scott, president of the Great Plains Canola Association, had a tough year as a canola producer this year. Mother Nature threw everything at his operation this season and he was only able to harvest about 50 percent of his planted acres due to wind, drought, and freeze losses. Still, he was encouraged by the yields on the acres they did harvest which came in at 30 to 36 bushels per acre.
Despite the vagaries of the weather, Scott said interest in producing canola across Oklahoma is growing by leaps and bounds. He spoke with Oklahoma Radio Network Farm Director Ron Hays at the Oklahoma-Kansas Winter Canola Conference held in Enid Wednesday. (You can hear the full interview by clicking on the LISTEN BAR at the bottom of this story.)
"I keep wondering when we're going to hit a point of saturation. With the number of conferences we're having, the number of meetings we're having, are we oversaturating people? And I walk into a program like this today and we've got 340 seats at tables and the walls lined with people as well as vendors in the back room manning booths. And, so, there's still great turnout, great participation. And I think the interest in this crop is increasing and I'd like to see between 400,000 and 500,000 acres go in the ground this fall throughout the region."
Scott said seed could be a limiting factor in planting that many acres, but seed companies have increased production after having tight supplies over the last couple of years and should be able to help farmers plant that many acres.
Turning to other issues, Scott said the passage of a farm bill is of great concern to canola growers as it is to other producers. He said one of the main problems with not having a farm bill is the uncertainty faced by farm lenders. Without an understanding of what the safety net will be for producers, banks may be reluctant to renew production loans.
"It is of key importance that we come out with good, sound policy that stabilizes agriculture which is one of the bright spots in the nation's economy. "
Scott said they are carefully studying the issue of crop insurance for canola producers. He said they are closely scrutinizing the possible extension of RMA approval for full crop insurance to more counties.
"We are taking a very cautious approach to that. We want to make sure we're actuarially sound as we expand the counties with full coverage. We've opened some counties in Kansas this year for full coverage. It's a process that we need to make sure stays actuarially sound and don't prematurely drive up premium costs in areas that would hamper the farmer's ability to get crop insurance."
Ten years into the process of getting Oklahoma farmers interested in growing canola, Scott said it is proving to be a very valuable crop not only to farmers, but to grain elevator operators as well. He said that farmers who rotate canola with their wheat crop are bringing cleaner wheat to the elevators that needs less blending and cleaning and makes it a more profitable commodity from the elevator operator's point of view.
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