6 It’s Farming. And It’s Better. Better Farming | January 2024 Beyond the Barn 2023 DRY BEAN ACRES LOWEST IN DECADE A recent report from OMAFRA shared a summary of Ontario’s 2023 dry bean crop. In 2023, dry beans were planted and insured on 93,161 acres, which is the lowest acreage in the past decade. Bean acreage peaked in 2020 at 157,500 acres. White beans have traditionally represented half of Ontario’s dry bean acreage but made up only one-third in 2023 at 33,600 acres. Adzuki beans were planted on a current record number of 23,000 acres, due in part to their high price. Kidney beans decreased in 2023, while black beans and cranberry beans remained consistent relative to previous years. A dry start to the season led to some challenges, with many producers choosing to increase seed depth at planting, or delay planting to wait for moisture. Throughout July, excessive moisture became a problem. Standing water in fields led to root rot, decreased nitrogen uptake and some plant death. Wet conditions throughout the summer led to some increased disease challenge. Preventative fungicides for white mould were commonly applied twice. OMAFRA reported that producers found appropriately timed fungicide application was successful in preventing white mould. A bacterial brown spot was also found in adzuki beans later in the season. Current available varieties of this bean do not offer resistance to bacterial brown spot and the weather also contributed to increased incidence of this pathogen. Some producers saw up to 30 per cent loss in their crops affected by bacterial brown spot. Harvest conditions were ideal with warm and dry weather during September until mid-October. This allowed beans to dry down properly. Producers have reported yields of average or above average. BF A recent release from Statistics Canada detailed farm cash receipts from the first three quarters of 2023. From January to September, Canadian farms totalled $72.5 billion in farm cash receipts, which is a 7.9 per cent increase from the same period in 2022. Crop receipts increased $4.5 billion from the first three quarters of 2022 to the first three quarters of 2023 to a total of $41.4 billion. StatCan attributes this to a gain in markets, although prices were down in the 2023 period. The largest increases in crop receipts were observed in canola, wheat, and durum wheat, contributing to more than 75 per cent of the growth in this category. These crops had higher marketings in 2023 following the drought in Western Canada in 2021 and a return to normal production levels in 2022. Growth in crop receipts occurred despite price drops of 15.5 per cent for canola, 8.9 per cent for wheat and 17.9 per cent for durum wheat. Livestock receipts increased $2.2 billion in this period, to a total of $27.2 billion, due to an increase in prices in the 2023 period. This was an 8.9 per cent increase relative to the 2022 period. Increased cattle receipts contributed to more than 80 per cent of the growth in livestock receipts, climbing by $1.8 billion to a total of $9.8 billion. This was related to strong demand for cattle in Canadian and U.S. markets, as well as rising input costs. Supply-managed receipts increased by 7.2 per cent to a total of $11.2 billion. All provinces reported increases in farm cash reciepts throughout the first three quarters of 2023. Saskatchewan led these increases, rising $2.3 billion to a total of $16.5 billion. This growth accounts for 40 per cent of the national growth. BF FARM RECEIPTS STILL UP AFTER Q3 Mary Lane - stock.adobe.com
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