Barley production and cultivar
development trends for
M.C. Therrien
AAFC Brandon Research Centre
Barley Production Tends for Western
Canada 2004-2008:
The
Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) has been conducting a detailed survey of the acreage
of barley production on a cultivar basis since 2004. This provides valuable
information on producer preference for cultivars and the implications on
domestic and export markets and future trends. The author summarizes survey
results and presents his own interpretation of production trends and possible
implications on the future direction of barley breeding in Western Canada (WC).
Barley
is the third largest annual crop grown in WC, with wheat (all types) being
number 1, followed by canola. Barley contributes billions of dollars to the
Canadian economy annually with over 7 million acres of production annually over
the last decade.
Table
1 shows the planted acreage of barley, by type, sown in WC over the last five
years. Year-to-year fluctuations in total production are largely driven by
market response from the previous year(s) crop sales. This can dramatically
affect production as evidenced by a 33% drop in acreage between 2007 and 2008
resulting from poor sales in 2007.
Table 1: Total Seeded Acres of Barley
–
(x ‘000 ac.)
|
Type |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
|
Two-row
malt |
5491 |
5829 |
3923 |
4765 |
4598 |
|
Two-row
feed |
3035 |
2713 |
2763 |
3296 |
1485 |
|
Six-row
malt |
805 |
712 |
726 |
1023 |
1092 |
|
Six-row
feed |
2057 |
1445 |
1587 |
1886 |
691 |
|
Hulless |
29 |
55 |
64 |
185 |
75 |
|
Forage |
230 |
397 |
958 |
1507 |
635 |
|
Total: |
11648 |
11151 |
10021 |
12662 |
8576 |
Although
overall production varies considerably from year to year, one can still see
fairly clear trends in production by specific type. Two-row malting barley was
the most widely grown type of barley in WC, with at least 1.4 times the acreage
as any other type. As well, we see six-row malting barley increasing in acreage.
The combination of the two suggests that the malting barley market is the main
driver for barley production in WC. Although market demand varies from year to
year, generally approximately 1 million acres of production is required to meet
the needs of the domestic and export malt industries. This is only about 1/5 of
the total annual production of malting barley across WC. The approx. 80% of the
crop rejected for malting goes to livestock feed. Given the fact that barley is
a coarse grain and that WC barley does have issues with mycotoxins,
most of the malting barley ends up as cattle feed. Cattle can handle barley
hulls and metabolize mycotoxins without adverse
effects.
If
we look at the production acreage of two and six-row feed barley, we see a
clear decline in production, especially in 2008. This strongly coincides with
the size of the cattle herds in WC, which saw a dramatic increase in 2007 and a
sharp decline in numbers in 2008. The same trend can be seen in forage barley,
which is exclusively fed to cattle. Thus, most of the barley production in WC
is tied to feed and fodder for cattle.
There
is a limited amount of hulless barley produced in WC, as well. This, however,
represents less than 2% of the total production and is used mainly in dairy and
swine rations.
Future Trends in
There
appears to be two major ongoing markets for barley growers in WC. Malting
barley, mainly two-rowed, and cattle feed and fodder. This is reflected in the
current efforts of the three barley breeding programs in WC. The efforts at
It
is not anticipated that these markets will change appreciably, overall, in the
next 10 to 15 years. Therefore, most of the efforts of the WC barley breeding
programs will likely continue in the present vein, with improvements being made
in yield, disease resistance and quality. These improvements will be contingent
on overcoming the current challenges, most notably securing adequate long-term
funding and replacement of aging plant breeders.