Planting progress was slower than normal across much of the Canadian Prairies this season but was largely completed by the end of May, while Central Canadian grain farmers completed the majority of their campaign by the middle of last month, in line with the long-term seeding pace despite disruptions from unseasonably wet weather.
According to the 2026 June Field Crop Survey, released last Tuesday and conducted over four weeks concluding on June 12, the nation’s farmers have increased the area allocated to canola, barley, corn and soybeans at the expense of wheat, oats, lentils and dry peas.
Responses from the 25,000 farms surveyed put the total area allocated to Canada’s principal field crops in 2026/27 at 31.0Mha, marginally lower than the record 31.1Mha planted last season. This compares to the five-year average of just under 30.9Mha and an average of 28.8Mha since the turn of the century.
Canola was the standout crop in the June report, with Canadian growers reacting to the favourable price outlook relative to other cropping options, and China’s reduction of anti-dumping tariffs on Canadian canola seed. Producers have reportedly planted a record 9.5 million hectares, surpassing the previous record of 9.3Mha set in 2017. The area is up from less than 8.8Mha in 2025 and exceeds the five-year average by more than 650,000 hectares.
The rise in canola allocation was primarily driven by Saskatchewan producers, who increased the seeded area by 9.8 per cent to 5.4Mha. Growers in Alberta reported an estimated area of 2.7Mha, 6.9 per cent higher year-on-year, while the Manitoba area estimate of 1.3Mha is a 6.3 per cent increase compared to 2025.
Canada’s grain growers reported barley plantings of 2.7Mha in 2026. This is up from 2.7Mha a year earlier, but lower than both the five-year and 25-year average of 2.9Mha and 3.4Mha, respectively. The increase in barley area was led by Alberta, where seeded area rose 12.0% to 3.7 million acres. Barley area rose 12.6% to 2.5 million acres in Saskatchewan, while area decreased 23.0% in Manitoba.
Strong export demand appears to be a key driver, with monthly trade data putting exports of barley over the first nine months of the crop year (August to April) at almost 2.9 million metric tonne. This is 1.2MMT, or 68 per cent higher than the same period last season and 35 per cent above the five-year average. China was the primary destination, accounting for nearly 60 per cent of total shipments, followed by Japan, Saudi Arabia, and the United States.
At the national level, the nation’s farmers have reported seeding a record 1.6Mha to corn in 2026, eclipsing the previous benchmark of 1.5Mha set three years ago. This is 4.8 per cent higher than the 2025 area and is 100,000 hectares above the average of the past five seasons. Ontario remains the main corn-growing province, accounting for nearly 60 per cent of the national total, followed by Quebec at just over 20 per cent, Manitoba at 15 per cent, with the balance spread across the other provinces.
After peaking at 2.9Mha in 2017, the area allocated to soybeans dropped dramatically over the ensuing three years to a recent low of 2.1Mha in 2020. However, the area has increased every year since, with a further 3.1 per cent year-on-year rise to 2.4Mha in 2026. Ontario is the largest soybean-producing province, accounting for 48 per cent of the reported area, but plantings this year are down 0.6 per cent compared to 2025. The big mover is Manitoba with an increase of 16.2 per cent, while Quebec growers reported a 3.1 per cent decline in the soybean allocation.
Wheat remains the largest crop by planted area in Canada this season. Survey results put the area at 10.3 million hectares, 5.9 per cent or 600,000 hectares less than the 2025 program, and around 100,000 hectares lower than the average of the past five seasons. However, it is still higher than the 10.0Mha average this century.
The spring wheat area fell from 7.6Mha to 7.3Mha but remains slightly above the five-year average of 7.25Mha. Durum wheat plantings dropped by 300,000 hectares to 2.4Mha, compared to the five-year average of 2.5Mha, and the winter wheat area that survived the winter dormancy period fell from 680,000 hectares to 640,000 hectares.
The largest decrease was reported in Saskatchewan, where growers reported seeding of 5.3Mha, 5.9 per cent lower than 2025. The 2026 area estimate for Alberta fell 5.4 per cent to 3.1Mha, while Manitoba producers reduced their wheat plantings by 8.4 per cent to 1.2Mha.
Canada is one of the world’s leading producers of oats each season, but the country’s farmers are reporting a 200,000 hectare decrease in the area to 1.0Mha in 2026. This is around 300,000 hectares less than the five-year average and more than 500,000 hectares less than the average seeded acreage since 2020. Interest in the crop is declining across much of Western Canada, with plantings in Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba down 15 per cent, 11.9 per cent and 27.9 per cent, respectively.
On the pulse front, Canadian farmers have reportedly planted fewer lentils and dry peas in 2026 due to a sharp fall in farmgate prices and poor gross margin projections relative to other cropping options. The estimated lentil area of 1.6Mha is 10.9 per cent lower than last season and 6.3 per cent less than the five-year average. The dry pea area of 1.2Mha is 14.1 per cent lower than last year and 10.9 per cent below the five-year average. Saskatchewan accounts for around 87 per cent of the lentil area and just over half of the dry pea area in 2026.
Crops in Alberta are reported to be in good shape despite well-above-average rainfall in June. While ample soil moisture reserves support crop development, there are concerns around the pace of plant development. At the close of last month, the province’s crops were rated 68 per cent good to excellent, three points above the five-year average, but three points below the ten-year average.
In Saskatchewan, almost all the crops have a good to excellent crop rating of 90 per cent or better on June 30, but the cool, wet weather has delayed plant development. The heavy rainfall has resulted in saturated fields with flooding of low-lying areas. Approximately three-quarters of fall cereal crops, two-thirds of the pulse crops and around half of the oilseed and spring cereal crops were at normal development. The remainder were behind normal.
Excess moisture and delayed plant development are a common narrative across many parts of Manitoba at the moment. Spring cereals are mostly between the tillering and stem elongation stages, with the earliest fields having the flag leaf visible. Canola development has continued rapidly and is generally between the 5-leaf and bolting stages, with the earliest fields beginning to flower.
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Written by Peter McMeekin.
