Weather conditions continue to affect agriculture industry in Saskatchewan

From rain to snow to nothing at all, Saskatchewan weather is leaving many farmers wondering if they will be able to seed at all this season.

It truly is a tale of two worlds. East Saskatchewan has too much moisture in its soil while the west is hoping to get even one rainy day. It’s a challenge farmer Clinton Monchuk understands firsthand having farmland near the Lanigan area.

“We’ve probably had a little over three inches of rain since the beginning of May,” Monchuk said. “So it is a little bit wetter and we’re just having a little bit more of a tough time getting seeding done.”

It’s a reality faced by farmers across the province. On average, more than half of the seeding process is complete by this time. But, this year it’s a different story.

Ian Boxall,  president of the Agriculture Producers Association of Saskatchewan. has farmland near Tisdale.

“It’s raining here today and it snowed this morning,” Boxall said. “We’re way far behind. Normally we would start seeding on May 1 and now I haven’t started and it’s the 19th of May so we are behind.

“I am not panicking yet but if it doesn’t straighten up soon, I am going to start to panic.”

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According to Boxall, the seeding deadline is June 20. He says for producers in the west of the province with no moisture to be found on their land, it’s a deadline they may not meet.

“Once it warms up we’ll have a good crop started and out of the ground,” said Boxall. “But those guys in the west, they really need rain to get that germinated and get that crop going over there so my concern is with them.”

1:27 Wet grounds slowing seeding in Saskatchewan

But seeding is not farmers’ only concern. For Monchuk, it’s the cost to farm. With inflation continuing to rise it’s becoming more and more expensive to get their products out to the public.

“We know as we move forward food inflation is going to get higher,” said Monchuk. “We are seeing some of those shortages so this is some of the reasons, some of the extra cost that we have now. It does filter down and will result in higher prices of food as we move forward.”

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