Wheat prices are down, but the harvest looks to be bountiful
The cool, wet spring presented challenges for NW farmers, but moisture has allowed grain crops to thrive
Wheat prices have slid about $4 a bushel from a couple of months ago, but agriculture experts say the crop is in excellent condition with a larger-than-average harvest expected.
Price fluctuations are typical this time of year, said Glen Squires, chief executive officer of the Washington Grain Commission.
“Grain prices are going down and they’re going to go back up,” Squires said Friday. “The market has a lot of volatility. I don’t know that there’s only one reason. We’re kind of in a weather market and there’s a lot of uncertainty in the market.”
In March, soft white wheat was selling in the $12-a-bushel range. Friday, the Pacific Northwest Farmers Cooperative reported soft white wheat sales at $8.55 a bushel.
Soft white wheat is the variety most commonly grown in this region and the majority of the crop is sold overseas for use in making noodles, crackers and pastry.
Farmers have been wrangling with high fuel and fertilizer costs this year, coupled with a cool, wet spring that made getting crops in the ground a challenge. But the winter wheat crop is thriving and spring crops that were seeded also are doing well because of higher moisture in the soil.
The National Agricultural Statistics Service reported Friday that winter wheat acres planted in Idaho are estimated at 780,000 acres, up 70,000 acres from last year. Harvested area is forecast at 720,000 acres, up 13% from 2021.
Acres planted to winter wheat in Washington are estimated at 1.85 million acres, up 100,000 acres from last year. Harvested area is forecast at 1.79 million acres, up 6% from 2021.
Spring wheat acres planted in the Northwest are down 14% from 2021, the agriculture service said. Idaho spring wheat planted acres decreased from 510,000 acres in 2021 to 470,000 acres in 2022. Washington spring wheat planted area at 470,000 acres, is down 110,000 from 2021.
Squires said wheat prices went up last fall because the excessively hot summer created low yields. The invasion in February by Russia of Ukraine, a major wheat-producing region, also had an impact on world wheat prices.
“I think there was a supply issue, but our production in the (Pacific Northwest) is supposed to be a much better crop this year,” Squires said. “If the estimates are accurate we could have 20 million bushels over our five-year average. So that plays into (the market volatility) a little bit.”
Hedberg may be contacted at khedberg@lmtribune.com.
