CONDITIONS: Even though farmers have planted the largest
wheat crop in the past six years, it emerged from winter in
strained conditions — akin to those at this point in 1996
and 2018, which led to lackluster harvests those years.
The main agronomic issue is of course the lack of moisture
across widespread acreage, where dry soils received among
the lowest winter precipitation ever recorded. April and May
moisture will be critical, as noted by members of our expert
panel starting on page 4. They also respond to volatile market
conditions compounded by global factors and other pressures/
costs hitting producers locally.