A lack of demand in western Canadian lentils, poor quality and farmers wanting higher crop prices are all contributing to a dim market outlook for the commodity, according to one industry participant.
“Farmers want the moon, they’re not going to get the moon, so there’s not much going on,” said Allan Wagner, managing director at Prairie Pulse Inc. at Vanscoy, Sask., southwest of Saskatoon.
The world lentil market is overflowing with very low-quality product, Wagner said. With lesser-quality yields dominating world supply, it will take a while before consumers consider looking at richer-quality product, he said.
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Overall, sales are very slow for this time of year, normally the largest marketing period, Wagner said.
With lost sales opportunity during this marketing period, Canadian farmers will now have to compete with countries including Turkey and Australia in an already-limited market, he said.
The long-term market for lentils does not look good; Wagner sees the overall situation not gaining any real strength in the future.
The lingering effects of lower-quality lentil crops worldwide, along with buyers trying to sell off poorer-quality yields, will affect long-term prices, he said.
The loss of revenue and farmers not wanting to plant more crop will also continue to push the trend downward, he said.
The current price for high-quality red lentils is 19 cents a pound while high-quality green lentils are at 28 cents a pound, Wagner said, adding that green lentils have the most to lose in the market, given the current situation.
