| | Purpose of survey | 2010 production
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Purpose of Survey
Greenfeed and silage production statistics for Alberta are not available from Statistics Canada or any other source, although producers in the province harvest significant acreage of annual crops for greenfeed and silage every year. To fill this data gap and to meet client needs, the Statistics and Data Development Branch of Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD) initiated a greenfeed and silage production survey in 2002. Since then, the survey has been conducted annually, to develop selected statistics for the forage industry.
As in previous years, the 2010 survey was conducted in partnership with Agricultural Fieldmen and Agriculture Financial Services Corporation. The survey collected data on greenfeed and silage acreage, yields and production at the municipality level. The information was then used, along with input from ARD specialists, to develop provincial estimates. It should also be mentioned that the yield and production estimates in this report are on a wet weight basis.
Alberta 2010 Greenfeed and Silage Production
Growing conditions during the 2010 crop season in Alberta were mainly favourable, despite the lack of precipitation in the Peace Region and excessive moisture in some other areas of the province. As a result, provincial average yields and production for most crops were higher than in 2009. Based on the recently released Statistics Canada report entitled “November Estimates of Production of Principal Field Crops, Canada, 2010”, total production of tame hay in the province was 9.2 million tonnes, up 71 per cent from 2009. The substantial increase in tame hay production reduced the need for greenfeed and silage.
In 2010, Alberta producers seeded an estimated total of 17.7 million acres to spring wheat, durum, barley, oats, mixed grains, triticale, canola and dry peas (see Table 1). Of the total seeded area, 92 per cent was harvested as grains and oilseeds, six per cent as greenfeed and silage, and two per cent was either grazed or abandoned. The percentage of crop area harvested for grains and oilseeds was much higher than in 2009, as the area harvested for greenfeed and silage declined significantly.
Total area harvested for greenfeed and silage in 2010 was estimated at 1.1 million acres, down 48 per cent from 2009. Total area harvested for greenfeed declined 53 per cent from 2009, to 575,000 acres, while silage acreage dropped 40 per cent to 570,000 acres.
The mainly favorable crop growing conditions in 2010 contributed to higher greenfeed and silage yields. The estimated provincial average yield for greenfeed was 3.04 tonnes per acre for barley (2.28 tonnes per acre in 2009), and 2.99 tonnes per acre for oats (1.96 tonnes per acre in 2009). For silage, the provincial average yield was estimated at 6.74 tonnes per acre for barley, and 6.94 tonnes per acre for oats, both well above their 2009 levels (4.38 tonnes per acre for barley, and 3.76 tonnes per acre for oats).
Despite the higher yields, total greenfeed production declined 19 per cent from 2009, to 1.7 million tonnes. This was due to the marked reduction in harvested area (down 53 per cent). For silage, total production was estimated at 3.9 million tonnes, up 14 per cent from 2009, as higher yields more than offset the impact of a smaller harvested area.
In 2010, barley and oats were the major crops harvested for greenfeed and silage production, although significant acreage of mixed grains, spring wheat and triticale were also taken off as forages. For greenfeed production, barley accounted for 34 per cent of the provincial total, while oats represented 42 per cent. Mixed grains and spring wheat accounted for 16 per cent and seven per cent, respectively. The remaining one per cent was from triticale. In terms of silage production, 65 per cent of the provincial total came from barley, 21 per cent from oats, and 11 per cent from mixed grains. Triticale and spring wheat represented two per cent, and one per cent, respectively.
Estimates of greenfeed and silage production in Alberta for previous years, dating back to 2002, are also shown in Table 1.
For further information on the survey results, please contact:
Chuanliang Su, Crop Statistician
Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development
Economics and Competitiveness Division
Statistics and Data Development Branch
Telephone: 780-422-2887
Fax: 780-427-5220
Email: chuanliang.su@gov.ab.ca
For a complete copy of the report with the tables, please download the attached .pdf file. |
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