Daryl Domitruk, now a research project manager for MPSG, said pulse and soybean prospects in Manitoba have become “very interesting” due to the war in the Middle East as well as speculation over upcoming weather conditions. He added that it is difficult to determine with certainty how many acres will be planted for certain crops.

“What we’ve been seeing is that soybeans are likely to increase in Manitoba. Dry beans are likely to be down and peas are tougher (to determine). We’re expecting similar acreage (from last year) but that could change with the weather,” Domitruk said.

His assessment largely reflected that of Statistics Canada’s latest principal field crop report released earlier this month. Soybean acres in Manitoba were projected at 1.869 million acres this year, up 12.9 per cent from 2025-26. Edible bean acres were projected at 120,000, down 45.6 per cent, while dry pea acres are expected to decline by 40.5 per cent at 116,700.

For daily markets update, visit the Western Producer Markets Desk

Domitruk attributed the drops in dry bean and pea acres to the markets being well-supplied, which resulted in prices going down and seeded area falling.

With shipments of fertilizer and urea being held up due to the war in Iran, farmers may be inclined to grow soybeans and other crops with low fertilizer needs. Domitruk said there is already additional interest from growers.

“That is the only thing that may accelerate bean or soybean acres than what’s already being projected,” he added. “But we need to pay close attention to crop rotations in Manitoba.”

He added that the amount of snow received in central and southern Manitoba this winter could provide the moisture necessary for good growing conditions. However, pulse planting is still restricted to specific windows of time.

“That window only works if seeding for wheat and canola go according to plan,” Domitruk said.

“It’s really difficult when you have so many different factors in play this year between markets, world events, weather and prices for inputs. Weather-wise, we can only assume things will be OK. Of course, it’s not in our hands and we can just see what we get,” he added.

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“If you have a cargo with any of the shipping lines, they are ending the journey at a destination that is not on your bill of lading,” said Tala Mobayen, director of Victoria Pulse Trading Corporation.

“They are very, very hefty at this point in time,” she said.

As a result, there is no business being conducted in that market.

“I don’t see anyone buying new cargo because they’re just worried about their safety,” said Mobayen.

Mideast accounts for $769M in pulse sales

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region bought 801,000 tonnes of Canadian pulses worth $769 million in 2025, according to Pulse Canada.

Roughly 78 per cent of that business was lentils, with chickpeas chipping in another nine per cent.

Shippers face $2,000-per-container surcharges

Saleh Reda, vice-president of GEDKO Global Trading Partners, said shippers with product on the water heading to the Middle East are being slammed with a US$2,000 per container, or $80 per tonne, surcharge.

They are also being forced to pay an $800 per container, or $32 per tonne, rerouting charge with their cargo being dropped off at the nearest safe port.

“It is for the importer to figure out how to get it from that safe port to their own destination,” he said.

GEDKO ships Canadian pulses primarily to the MENA region, although it services other markets around the world as well.

Reda said further sales to the Middle East market are “frozen” because freight forwarders are telling buyers they must pay a $200 per container emergency conflict surcharge a $500 per container rate restoration initiative fee and a $150 per container emergency fuel surcharge.

“The long and short of it is, I don’t think anybody is really having the stomach to make a sale to that region,” he said.

Algeria adds to regional trade complications

Business was already slow in the MENA region even before war broke out. Liquidity has dried up in the pulse industry due to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and ensuing market uncertainty.

Reda had been anticipating brisk sales due to vastly reduced pulse prices in 2025-26, but if anything, business has been slower than the previous year.

“The demand was lousy and now it’s lousier,” he said.

Exporters are used to encountering unexpected problems in the MENA region.

For instance, Algeria recently announced that only the Algerian government is allowed to import pulses as of January 2026.

Port closures block access to key distribution hub

In the past, a couple dozen Canadian exporters would ship product to a couple dozen Algerian importers.

“It’s now pretty much going to be just one or two exporters from Canada (shipping) to that one Algerian importer,” said Reda.

“That’s one unfortunate event that has happened recently.”

However, the war in Iran is affecting multiple markets at once. Shippers can no longer access ports such as Jebel Ali located near Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

It is an important hub that services many other countries in the region.

“As an exporting nation, we need every single market out there to be open for us,” he said.

Red lentil prices slip as markets close

Reda believes the sudden loss of many vital markets in the Middle East will hurt pulse prices in Canada.

Red lentil prices were about $0.23 per pound as of March 16, according to Stat Publishing. That compares to about $0.25 before the onset of the conflict in Iran.

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That would be in addition to the planted area recently projected by Statistics Canada, as nitrogen-based fertilizers have seen price hikes of 30 per cent since the start of the current Middle East war. Vessels transiting the narrow Strait of Hormuz to and from the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf have come to a stop, which threatens global supplies.

On Feb. 27, nearby urea futures on the Chicago Board of Trade were nearly US$442 per tonne and then jumped to US$590 by March 3. Since then, urea has fluctuated with crude oil prices, closing on March 9 at US$585/tonne.

Pulses add nitrogen

Risula said in a March 10 interview that switching to pulses would make sense due to the nitrogen benefits they provide.

“But it may not be as much as one might think because there are other aspects that could influence farmers’ decisions,” he added.

He said farmers’ crop rotations would be a major consideration as well as concerns over root rot, which has been a problem for pulse crops in Saskatchewan.

Of the choices for additional pulse acres, Risula said the most likely would be lentils. Another selection he said farmers would consider is chickpeas.

“They’re growing it away from the area it was intended for, which was the drier part of southwest Saskatchewan,” he said, noting there are more chickpea varieties available.

StatCan recently forecast a 13.3 per cent increase of planted chickpea acres in Saskatchewan for 2026/27 at 559,100.

Phosphorus issues

As for lentils and peas, Risula cautioned these pulses require good phosphorus levels, which is currently a problem in the province.

“Generally, our soils have been running down in phosphorus levels,” which he said are cyclical.

That would also mean farmers would have to consider the costs to applying phosphorus where levels are lower than normal and its availability. While urea process have risen significantly, those for phosphorous are up only five per cent.

StatCan planted and forecast pulse acres in Saskatchewan

Pulse 2025/26 2026/27

Lentils 3,808,600 3,643,900

Dry Peas 1,773,000 1,479,300

Chickpeas 493,400 559,100

Faba Beans 15,300 29,800

Dry Beans 8,600 n/a

– With files from Sean Pratt, Glacier FarmMedia

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Marlene Boersch of Mercantile Consulting Venture Inc. in Winnipeg said large carryouts and lower prices over the past year will likely mean fewer pulse acres this spring.

“Like for all commodities, prices are down quite a bit. So your return-per-acre calculation will change very significantly,” Boersch said. “On top of that, for both lentils and peas, you will have some very significant carryout.”

Seeded lentil acres were estimated at 4.138 million tonnes, down 5.5 per cent from last year. The total would be the least amount of acres in three years and the second-least since 2020. One reason for the decline would be the 2025-26 carryout of 1.695 million tonnes, more than three times larger than the previous year’s.

Dry pea acres were also set to be lower, dropping by 12.3 per cent at 3.078 million acres. The figure was also the lowest in three years and the second-lowest since 2012. Dry pea plantings will decline in all three Prairie provinces, most notably Saskatchewan where it will lose 16.6 per cent for a total of 1.479 million. The 2025-26 carryout for dry peas was 1.31 million tonnes, nearly triple from the previous year.

The amount of edible bean acres is projected to decline by 30.7 per cent at 295,000 acres, the smallest total since 2015 and one year after the biggest edible bean crop since 2020. Manitoba’s seeded area was estimated at 120,000 tonnes this year, down 44.7 per cent from 2025.

StatCan estimated faba beans acres this spring to total 55,900, 18.8 per cent lower than in 2025 and the fewest acres since 2016. It would also mark the fourth straight time faba bean acres in Canada declined year-by-year.

Chickpeas were the only pulse to buck the trend. Canadians are expected to use 6.3 per cent more land than last year to grow the crop at 575,000 acres. It would be the fifth straight yearly increase for chickpeas and its largest seeded area since 2001. This is despite 2026 ending stocks for chickpeas having more than quadrupled from the year before at 275,000 tonnes.

The planting survey was conducted from mid-December to mid-January. However, rising fertilizer prices tied to the escalating conflict in the Middle East could shift planting intentions, said Glacier FarmMedia analyst Bruce Burnett. He said the relatively lower input costs for pulse crops compared to other options could lead to more area going to peas and lentils this spring than earlier expectations.

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WHY IT MATTERS: More than 80 per cent of pulses exported from Canada to India are grown in Saskatchewan.

The Canada-India Pulse Protein Centre of Excellence would be built at the National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management in Kundli, 40 kilometres north of New Delhi, said the Saskatchewan government in a March 3 news release.

The proposed centre would focus on the advancement of pulse protein processing and the development of fortified foods. It would also strengthen the relationship and support economic growth between the two countries, as well as improve global nutrition, reduce environmental impacts and advance sustainable agriculture.

Both the U of S and NIFTEM were named by their respective federal governments to be the co-chairs of the facility.

“The University of Saskatchewan has a strong history of developing agricultural innovations that have real world impact,” said Baljit Singh, the U of S’s research vice-president.

“We are committed to addressing the global demand for plant-based proteins and applying our world-class researchers, labs and infrastructure to address these needs. We look forward to working alongside our partners in India and the Government of Saskatchewan to create sustainable solutions.”

The pulse protein centre was announced during a trade mission to India by Canadian officials, including Canadian prime minister Mark Carney and Saskatchewan premier Scott Moe.

“Our province is essential for global food security,” Moe said.

“This announcement represents an opportunity to bring Saskatchewan’s expertise and ingenuity in pulse production to the people of India. By working together, we will accelerate innovation, expand processing capabilities, and help meet growing demand for affordable, high quality, sustainably grown foods.”

More than 80 per cent of all pulses exported from Canada to India are grown in Saskatchewan, primarily lentils, chickpeas and yellow peas.

“The Centre of Excellence underscores the long-term partnership between Saskatchewan and India in pulses,” Saskatchewan Pulse (SaskPulse) Growers chair Stuart Lawrence said.

“This collaboration between academia and government can help ensure more pulses are included in large-scale food applications and enhance the role pulses play in delivering nutritional security for the benefit of Indian consumers and Saskatchewan farmers.”

Saskatchewan has exported more than $18 billion worth of goods to India since 2007. The province opened a trade and investment office in New Delhi in 2021, one of nine worldwide.

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U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced Feb. 19 that the USDA intended to purchase up to $263 million in dairy and agricultural products from U.S. farmers and producers to distribute to food banks and nutrition assistance programs across the country.

“From milk and dairy to fruits, legumes, and tree nuts, these staples are essential for feeding families and sustaining America’s agricultural economy,” said Rollins.

Pulses make up US$75 million of that total, with US$25 million allocated for edible beans, US$24 million for split peas, US$14 million for lentils and US$12 million for chickpeas. The remainder of the funds are slated for dairy, fresh fruit and nuts.

The purchases will be made through USDA’s authority under Section 32 of the Agriculture Act of 1935 with the stated goal of assisting producers and communities in need.

USA Pulses welcomed the move, with CEO Tim McGreevy noting in a Global Pulses report that the announcement provides “meaningful support for American pulse producers while helping deliver nutritious, affordable food to families across the country.”

He added that investment recognizes “the essential role pulses play in both uplifting rural and agricultural communities and promoting food security,” and noted the purchases will help “stabilize farm income, strengthen rural economies, and ensure food banks and nutrition assistance programs have access to shelf-stable, protein-rich foods.”

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In Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s principal field crop estimates released last month, the projected dry bean carryout was 95,000 tonnes, compared to 40,000 the year before.

A grain marketer from southern Manitoba said he has seen pintos, black beans and navy beans have recently declined in price to the mid-30 cent per pound range. Meanwhile, kidney beans are in the low-60s.

Prairie Ag Hotwire reported a monthly drop of more than one cent and a yearly drop of more than 30 cents for navy and black beans at 27.5 and 26.5 cents delivered as of Feb. 10. Kidney beans saw the largest monthly increases at four cents for the dark variety and 7.2 cents for light, but yearly drops were down 22.8 and 9.5 cents, respectively, at 55.3 and 57 cents.

Solid pricing over the last five years resulted in additional acres for dry beans, said the marketer. However, this also resulted in additional stocks which eventually pressured prices.

“Last season, because the other commodities were less attractive, the edibles were in the 40s. That drew a large crop,” he said. “And then with all the precipitation in North Dakota, Mexico and Manitoba, they had decent crops and overproduction over the last two seasons.”

Nevertheless, demand remains strong for dry edible beans due to their relatively high protein content, but ending stocks will still be large. For 2026-27, AAFC estimated a carryout of 80,000 tonnes.

“Movement is strong, but there will still be a carryover. New crop is not that attractive in the mid-30s. But because edible beans are such a small crop, any weather trouble in North Dakota, Mexico, Michigan and Ontario, prices could spring back up.”

While 205,000 acres of edible beans were seeded in Manitoba last year, said the marketer, he expects between 130,000 to 140,000 acres this spring. AAFC projected 370,658 acres nationwide for 2026-27, down from 425,051 the previous year.

Nevertheless, the marketer said he thinks dry edible bean prices are at their low point and have plenty of upside in the coming months.

“It’s kind of the bottom of the market because we still have beans to move out of the province. I would think if we had a regular crop and there wasn’t any shortage, (these are the numbers) they would trade at,” he added.

Cranberry beans gained 5.8 cents over the past month, but lost 11.5 cents this year at 36 cents delivered. Great Northern beans dipped 0.3 cents over the past month while losing 23.3 cents this year at a price of 28.8 cents. Small red beans are at 47 cents delivered after a monthly increase of 2.3 cents and a yearly decrease of 23.5 cents.

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Peas

• Canada exported 155,841 tonnes of peas in November, which was down by 44 per cent from October. Crop year-to-date pea exports of just over one million tonnes compares with 1.266 million at the same point in 2024/25.
• Bangladesh was the largest destination for peas in November, but India remains the top customer for the year at 416,405 tonnes through four months.
• Yellow peas account for 87 per cent of the total pea exports.
• Crop year-to-date pea exports to China of 90,454 tonnes are down 73 per cent on the year, as Chinese tariffs limited movement earlier in the marketing year. Expectations are for exports to China to pick up in March when tariffs are lifted.

Lentils

• Canadian lentil exports in November of 184,070 tonnes were down 37 per cent from the previous month, with crop year-to-date exports of 775,370 tonnes down 6.6 per cent from the same point the previous year.
• The United Arab Emirates was the largest lentil destination in November, taking 41,636 tonnes, but India remains the top importer of Canadian lentils on the year at 232,112 tonnes through four months.

Chickpeas

• Canada exported 28,338 tonnes of chickpeas in November, up by about 10,000 tonnes from the previous month. Crop-year-to-date chickpea exports of 73,877 tonnes were 39 per cent above the previous year.
• The United States was the largest destination for chickpeas through four months, accounting for 21.5 per cent of the total. Pakistan, Turkey, Italy and Israel round out the top five.

Edible beans

• Canada has exported 79,778 tonnes of dry edible beans through November, with roughly half of that headed to the United States. Year-to-date 2025/26 edible bean exports are up 8.3 per cent from the same point the previous year.
• Edible bean exports in November of 26,356 tonnes were up 6.5 per cent from October.

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A pulse consumption per capita study from 2021, found Canada ranked 47th out of 144 countries, at 3,381 kilograms per capita, an alarming 30 per cent drop from the previous year. It’s been a continuous decline since it reached an all-time high in 2017 of 11,030 kg.

WHY IT MATTERS: Increasing domestic consumption of pulses at home in Canada helps with exporting pressures abroad when trade barriers pop up on the international stage.

Pulses are found to be more highly consumed in developing countries than in industrialized ones, accounting for 75 per cent of the average diet.

Looking to reverse these trends in domestic consumption, Pulse Canada had its 25 by 2025 strategic initiative to diversify the industry by directing 25 per cent of pulse production to new markets and end-use categories to encourage consumption abroad and domestically. Also, the Road to $25 Billion campaign by Protein Industry Canada looks to bolster ingredient manufacturing and food processing at home to make domestic consumption easier.

Reasons for not consuming pulses identified in both North American and European studies include:

• dislike of taste and/or texture,

• low knowledge of health value

• lack of knowledge around cooking method

• negative perceptions of time and effort in preparing and cooking

• potential for gastronomical issues

Pulse Canada did a deep dive into the production volumes of each pulse and have found dry beans, faba beans and chickpeas as the largest growth potential for domestic consumption. Direct-to-consumer promotions such as its Love Canadian Beans social media push have showcased its affordability in food security and their ability to be consumed in a variety of ways in meal and recipe types.

“To complement that, we recognize consumers do need to have an almost direct experience with food to encourage them to consume and make new dishes at home,” says Julianne Curran, vice president of Market Innovation for Pulse Canada.

“We’re leaning into opportunities with food-service operators here in Canada, where consumers may have an opportunity to try something when they’re dining out,” says Curran. “After a positive experience, then they would be more encouraged to perhaps buy a can of beans and make something at home. We do have a lot of natural interest from food service operators here in Canada, that are also looking at increasing their plant-based offerings (on their menu), recognizing affordability being a real big concern amongst their clients.”

The Canadian pulse industry is also making its way into educational institutions to sing the praises of pulses to Gen Z, where university and public-school aged students are putting a higher priority on plant-forward dishes along with the general public.

Alberta Pulse Growers unveiled this academic year, a partnership with School Sports Alberta in promoting its Pulse to Plate campaign in its over 400 schools, including easy-to-make delicious recipes for families on the go.

“The other thing we’ve been doing more of is leveraging some of the marketing messages that you can be highlighting about being nutritional benefits and continuing to educate the companies that are manufacturing bean products for retail sales, so that they can use a lot of that messaging on their labels and in their marketing as well,” says Curran, adding in higher fibre and protein intakes in a food security affordable way.

“There are various nutrition claims that you can make around beans. We’re wanting to ensure that companies know all the things they can say.”

For the food-manufacturing industry, Pulse Canada is promoting the increase of the domestic utilization of faba beans and chickpeas. Given the quality of the crop grown in Canada, it lends itself to value-added processing.

“Faba beans in particular do lend themselves really well to the same type of processing as we’re seeing for dry peas,” says Curran.

“So that’s fractionation processing, flour processing. We’re trying to promote to the food-manufacturing industry here in North America the value in terms of added nutrition and functionality that those ingredients can provide to food products.”

There has been some successful use of fava beans in animal feed, with markets also available in pet food as an end-use product.

Demand for chickpeas has traditionally been for humus, but the versatile pulse can be ground into a gluten-free flour, rich in protein and fibre, for baking, thickening or binding, or used as an egg substitute in vegan recipes.

“It’s got high uptake by consumers, and so we are working to promote chickpeas for those value-added processing streams that are really seeing growth here in North America. We’re doing that through a lot of projects to demonstrate the performance of Canadian chickpeas into some of those newer applications and market that to the food industry,” says Curran.

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Why it matters: U.S. pulses compete with Canadian crops on the international export market.

Peas

• · Dry edible pea production was estimated at 838,400 tonnes in the January report, which was down by nearly 100,000 tonnes from the December estimate but still up from the 772,400 tonnes grown in 2024.
• · Average U.S. pea yields were lowered to 1.95 tonnes per hectare from 2.03 T/ha in December, while harvested pea area was down six per cent from the previous month at 430,190 hectares.
• · Green peas are currently trading as high as US$9.60 per bushel (C$13.28) in North Dakota with yellow peas topping out at US$6.25 (C$8.65), according to Prairie Ag Hotwire data.

Lentils

• · Average U.S. lentil yields were raised to 1.25 T/ha, from 1.18 T/ha in December. However, production was revised lower due to a 10 per cent drop in harvested area.
• · Total U.S. lentil production for 2025 is now estimated at 478,860 tonnes. That compares with the December estimate of 502,720 tonnes and the year-ago level of 410,460 tonnes.

Chickpea

• · Chickpea production, at 310,440 tonnes, was down from the previous estimate of 337,020 tonnes, but up by 20 per cent from 2024.
• · Average U.S. chickpea yields of 1.47 T/ha compare with 1.29 T/ha in 2024.

Edible beans

• · U.S. farmers grew 1.218 million tonnes of edible beans in 2025, according to the USDA. That was down from 1.420 million tonnes in the previous year and the December estimate of 1.363 million tonnes.

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