2018 Another interesting year to be a farmer

 It’s been an interesting year on the farm. Not only are we dealing with a lack of rainfall for our crops but also lower commodity prices. These lower prices for our crops can be blamed at least partly on international trade issues. NAFTA and India have hurt Canola, Soybean and Yellow Pea prices on my farm. Wheat and Barley are bright spots so far but yields aren’t good enough to make up for losses in the other crops. Stack on top of this the price of pre bought fertilizer rising upwards of $100/tonne over last years price on my blend and it it’s a double whammy. Another issue is trying to take off the 2018 crop. We were off to a good start but are being rained or snowed on quite regularly lately so it is at a complete stand still. This is nothing new and the weather will turn better and everyone will hopefully get their crop off.

  We have been very fortunate the last few years with prices and yields above average. This helps to lessen the blow as having a little cushion makes it easier to ride this out but it isn’t sustainable. Farming is never easy and not for the faint of heart. The fact of the matter is we have no control over the majority of the things that are negatively affecting us right now. But we control what we can and just have to let the other things ride themselves out.

  

Things we have no control over
  -Weather- Mother Nature

  -Trade- Politicians

  - Commodity Prices- World leaders(Politicians) Supplies

  - Input costs- Large companies and once again politicians can affect this

Things we can control or at least have an affect on

  -Pre sell commodities- Sell at higher prices before the crop is off(some risk)

  -Pre buy inputs- Buy fertilizer and seed and chem now for next year. Usually means paying                   interest and having to store fertilizer on your farm.

  -Conserve moisture in a dry year by direct seeding. Not all farmers are dry in their area, some are          flooded out as well but in my area we need to conserve soil moisture. 

 The other events of the last few weeks and months have been the Glyphosate ruling in California. This ruling will more than likely never get paid out in full but what it does do is bring bad press to an already troubled chemical. Add on top of this the finding of low levels of glyphosate in certain foods and the war on this chemical has been ramped up immensely. We will more than likely lose glyphosate as a pre harvest application in the near future but the real shame will be if we lose it completely. Through its use we have been able to control weed pressure without the use of tillage. Pre seed applications are helping to control early weed pressure that can result in huge yield losses. Although we can farm without glyphosate dramatic changes will occur on most farms as they adapt.
  The other big one this year that hasn't taken affect yet is the proposed Neonic ban in Canada.This is a seed treatment that works as a selective insecticide. So it is placed on the seed before hand in the case of canola in western Canada, shipped in bags and then we put the seed in the ground. It helps control flea beetle damage early in the plants life. Its effects last approximately 15 days which help the plant get past the very weak cotyledon stage. Without Neonic seed treatment we will be forced to use a non selective insecticide to do the same job which will result in beneficial insects being killed. This ruling can only lead to more regulation in other areas and I fear this is only the beginning.
  The war on GMO's also continues. Genetic engineering of Canola,Corn and Soybeans has accounted for a huge increase in yields and has also brought us better disease resistance resulting in less applications of fungicides. The benefits of this to farmers and to the quality of what we produce is immeasurable but a growing amount of people see it as another evil. The lack of understanding of what is involved in Genetically modified organisms has led people to think it's about chemicals or introducing horrible things into the seed. When it comes to food evolving, people are slow to allow it. Agriculture has been put into the middle of this ongoing debate of what is safe and what isn't. I find myself having to defend technology as well as the companies who developed them. In a world of catch phrases Non-GMO has become a huge one in food marketing and we will end up being the losers in this deal.

  Definitely lots of challenges in Agriculture right now and I'm sure many more to come. We will continue to fight to have our voices heard and those of science. There are very few of us but we do have allies in the general public who believe in what we are doing. We use the avenues we have like Social Media and engaging with people in grocery stores or through the mainstream media. All of this helps but whether or not it will be enough remains to be seen. The associations that represent farmers are also fighting the good fight on our behalf and I'm thankful for them.
  The future is up in the air and as far as commodity prices and yields go this is only one year of many. In sport no team has a winning season every year. You work hard and do your best but sometimes it just doesn't work out and you learn from it and move on. Farmers have been dealing with the ups and downs for many generations and that will never change. We will adapt no matter what you give us or take away from us because at the end of the day everyone needs to eat!