Looking ahead to a new year and a new production season with optimism is exciting, and there are plenty of good reasons for farmers to be in a positive mindset for ’23. Challenges can create opportunities, too, so even the less-good can end up manageable with the right plan. As we look to the year ahead, there are definite challenges at the field, retail, and policy level.

Here’s a list of what we’re watching:

Product shortfalls: There are still product shortages and supply chain hiccups to navigate for the year ahead. Agronomists and farmers alike are already being told that some products are either unavailable, in short supply, backordered, or less available by region. The products range from certain insecticides, equipment, to some fertilizer options, to active ingredients. We’ll do our best to keep tabs on what’s in short supply, but it’s likely in everyone’s best interest to call ahead early.

Profit and loss: What’s the opposite of once bitten, twice shy? Contracting grain in 2021 bit many a producer in the pocket book, through drought-induced crop failure. In 2022, it seemed the loser was measured by who sold at the lowest super high price. While input costs have also risen, there was margin to be made on the ’22 crop. Will the “can’t lose” attitude cost those who count on the market remaining lofty? (or at least still in a profitable ratio to costs?)

Managing monsters: Waterhemp, Palmer amaranth, kochia, wild oats — what do they all have in common? We’re running out of active ingredients that kill these weeds and it’s only getting worse. Plus, flea beetles in many areas of the Prairies have made growing canola without insecticide seed treatment and foliar sprays near impossible for some growers. In Ontario, some corn rootworm populations have overcome the resistance trait causing widespread damage in some fields. What’s the solution? There’s no one thing that fixes any of these issues, and the answer is likely the full combination of tools that begins with adding real diversity to the crop rotation as the first step.

Navigating policy direction: This year will be remembered as a busy one for strategies and aspirations. The federal government pushed forward with applying an environmental lens to any and all programs. This means that the next ag policy framework is now the Sustainable Canadian Agriculture Partnership (SCAP), and that there’s a new Sustainable Ag Strategy in the works. We also saw new protocols for carbon credits released, with a nod to more being developed soon. This year also marks two years since the fertilizer emissions reduction targets were set out, but we’re not entirely sure if we’ve made progress on the 10-year timeline beyond identifying where some of the gaps are in measurement, reduction, and accounting. Looking forward, the advent of the “Sustainability Accountant” role for farms seems imminent.

Source - https://www.realagriculture.com