The president of the Canola Council of Canada says she realizes the Council's plans for increasing canola production are ambitious, but she argues they are still realistic.
The CCC announced last week that it's aiming for 26 million tonnes of canola production in Canada by 2025 - a 44 percent increase over last year's bumper crop of 18 million tonnes. 26 million tonnes would be reached with an average yield of 52 bushels per acre, compared with the average 40 bushel per acre yield in 2013.
"We started our analytical work a year and a half ago in the midst of a crop that was a lot more challenging. At that time we were thinking that it was a big, big goal, and once again farmers have shown us what they can do with good weather conditions, so I don't think we're crazy anymore," says Patti Miller. "I think this is a good stretch goal, and I think we're going to get there."
Getting there will mean increasing the capacity of a grain handling system that is currently bogged down with a much smaller canola crop. She says they believe the transportation system will adapt.
"When you set a goal, the entire industry knows, including all of the folks involved in handling, transportation and all of the other infrastructure that's required, they know where we're going. We're saying we're going beyond 15 million tonnes, beyond 18 million tonnes. We want to get to 26, so let's figure out what we need to do in the long term to make sure our system can handle that," says Miller.
She explains the entire plan is built around where they think demand for canola oil, meal and seed will be in 2025.
"When we were looking at developing a new strategic plan, we really focused on what was happening in the world markets, so the plan is driven by world demand," she says.
Miller notes she doesn't expect any problem in getting the canola industry to support the plan.
"This is the industry's plan. Our board is made up of the entire value chain. Producers, life science companies, grain handling companies, processing companies, it is their strategic plan, not one developed by the staff," she explains. "I think once others involved in the infrastructure see where we're going, there will be a lot of conversations in the days, weeks and years ahead about how we get there as a country."