It was the best of times, it was the worst of times — that pretty much tells the tale of the 2024 edible bean season in the Ontario and Manitoba growing areas.
With a cool, windy spring, Manitoba Ag pulse and soybean specialist Dennis Lange says he never expected to see record edible crops in the province in 2024, but that was before strong summer growing conditions pushed the average yield for all edibles over 2,000 pounds per acre.
On the first episode of the RealAgriculture Edible Bean School for 2025, Lange and Hensall Co-op origination manager Wade Bickell join host Bernard Tobin for a look back at the ups and downs of the last growing season and issues that may impact the new crop.
In Ontario, growers, depending on where they farm, saw both good and bad growing conditions in 2024, says Bickell. The spring started well, “and then it started to rain.” The crop was finally in the ground around June 20, but in some areas, such as Oxford County, the rain just kept coming: “The water laying in the fields was some of the worst I’ve ever seen,” says Bickell.
But further north, in fields at Brussels, Ont., Bickell saw some of the nicest beans he’s ever laid eyes on. Adzuki beans set a second consecutive yield record and other classes, including navy, black and kidney beans, produced commendable average yields, despite the challenging conditions.
In Manitoba, the big yield story emerged from pinto bean fields where 109,636 harvested acres yielded an average 2,264 pounds per acre and blew past both the 5- and 10-year average. Lange says there’s plenty of grower enthusiasm heading into 2025 and he expects acres to stay steady with potential for a small uptick based on market opportunities.
When it comes to 2025 markets, Bickell says growers will see good opportunities in a number of classes, including white, navy, black and dark red kidney beans. He notes the market is also keeping a close eye on the potential impact of U.S. tariffs. He believes tariff talk is leading buyers and end users to rethink the way supply chains could work moving forward and edible beans may end up finding different ways to market. Watch the video below.
Tap here to watch more Edible Bean School videos.
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS | All Podcasts
