Posted on 08/27/2017 11:26:38 PM PDT by Olog-hai
Many wheat farmers facing low prices have turned this year to other crops, including chickpeas and lentils, in hopes of turning a profit.
This year’s wheat crop of 45.7 million acres (18.49 million hectares) is the smallest since 1919 and it comes after a 2016 crop that was the least profitable in 30 years.
North Dakota, Montana and Nebraska are among the states with significantly fewer wheat acres. …
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I was an accidental wheat farmer for about 14 years as I inherited a KS farm from an uncle. The whole farm was 160 acres (quarter-section) and had 72 acres in wheat. I had maybe three really good years, 9 years were marginally OK, and a couple of years where either crop insurance or the USDA price support came into play. I sold the place at the top in 2013 and am very glad to be out of the game.
I thought soybeans would also be a profitable crop.
There are so many gluten-free diets nowadays, I thought many would be using soy products as a protein source.
I was photographing in Washington state’s Palouse region 2 weeks ago. I was surprised how much land was in lentils, garbanzos and beer barley. It used to be all hard and soft wheats.
There’s no mention of the ongoing drought in those areas.
U.S. Drought Monitor
http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/
Chickpeas and lentils should pump some nitrogen into the soil. When the gluten free fad fades the grain harvests might be really good with all that fertilizer.
If prices are low, that means that demand is low, or supply is high. Either way, the Invisible Hand is doing its job. Farmers are switching to other crops, and thus supply will drop, and thus the price will rise again.
The low carb trend is taking a toll on wheat.
Excellent point.
Yes. Yields have more than doubled in the last 50 years alone.
Lentils and peas practically grow themselves. Beans in general pull nitrogen out of there air and put it back into the soil, while other crops are reversed, pulling the nitrogen out of the soil. Resting the soil with beans would be beneficial.
A friend of mine bought some secluded land out in an arid desert area, scrub, cacti, mesquite etc... planted up a bunch of jojoba and sells it to a variety of markets.
“I thought soybeans would also be a profitable crop.
There are so many gluten-free diets nowadays, I thought many would be using soy products as a protein source”
too much soy is very unhealthy in a human diet due to its high phytoestrogen content. Men who eat too much soy can grow breasts. People who take diet seriously know all of this and avoid soy.
“When the gluten free fad fades the grain harvests might be really good with all that fertilizer.”
it’s not going to fade. i know many people who feel MUCH better when they cut cereal grains from their diet.
“The low carb trend is taking a toll on wheat.”
not to mention zero gluten ...
Gluten free means going against the grain.
What about women? I could use a little “help” in that area.
With the popularity of humus, chickpeas is the way to go. Of course, that fad will fade and a new crop will need to be grown.
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