Sunflower Highlights

Post Date: Jul 18 2022

Crop Progress - Monday, July 18, 2022

State	This Week	Last Week	Last Year	5 Year Average
North Dakota
Blooming	1	1	5	9
Kansas
Planted	96	94	97	97
Texas
Harvested	20	15	19	NA

Crop Conditions - Monday, July 18, 2022

State	Timeframe	Very Poor	Poor	Fair	Good	Excellent
North Dakota	This week	0	0	14	80	6
	Last week	0	1	15	77	7
Minnesota	This week	0	0	16	79	5
	Last week	0	1	19	74	6
Colorado	This week	3	8	61	23	5
	Last week	1	2	60	29	8

Scout for moths and red sunflower seed weevil

As sunflower fields begin to bloom, adults of red sunflower seed weevil (RSSW) will be emerging and will fly to the nearest flowering sunflowers. RSSW are small (2.5 to 3.1 mm long) with a snout and are reddish-orange. It’s also time to scout for banded sunflower moth (BSM), Arthuri sunflower moth (ASM) and sunflower head moth (SHM). Once the decision to treat has been made, it is critical to time the spray application correctly to get effective management of all sunflower head insects, including RSSW, BSM, ASM, SHM and Lygus bug. The best sunflower plant stage to treat is when the majority of plants are in the R5.1 growth stge. Visit www.sunflowernsa.com/growers/Insects/ to read more about scouting for insects and the best treatments. To see the insecticides registered in sunflower, visit www.ag.ndsu.edu/publications/crops/north-dakota-field-crop-insect-management-guide.

Markets

Sunflower prices followed a wide range of other commodities, including corn, wheat, and soybean lower after the release of a bearish USDA World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report last week. Adding further pressure to seed prices are sharply lower vegetable oil prices. USDA trimmed production estimates for 2022 soybean production on lower acreage reported in the June 30 USDA Acreage Report. The report surprised traders as USDA increased old crop soybean stocks and cut 2022/23 soybean usage rates significantly even though 135 million fewer bushels are expected to be harvested from this year’s record crop. After digesting the figures some traders think we are starting to see USDA increase expectations for more buyer hesitancy amid a looming global recession and high commodity prices that could drive down oilseed prices further. There are also thoughts in the market that high soybean prices are likely to drive demand destruction in the new crop marketing year, with the export market taking the biggest hit. A surge in the value of the U.S. dollar as a global safe haven asset continues to make U.S. exports a less desirable option on the global market. Outside markets, primarily central bank interest rate adjustments and inflation have added to the bearish tone. Currently weather conditions are mostly favorable for sunflower development in the Dakotas and Minnesota. The latest USDA supply and demand figures will guide market direction in the week ahead.

Grower report

Kennedy, MN grower Tom Dowdle says his sunflowers look good and are at the 4-6 leaf stage. Dowdle says the moisture conditions are adequate in some areas with a surplus in others. He has started to see a significant amount of grasshoppers along the edges of the fields along with a few crickets. He has had hot days with cool evenings. With several days of very hot weather in the forecast he expects his sunflowers to really take off.

Consider cattail control

July to mid-August is a good time to remove blackbird roosting locations, such as marshes sloughs and cattails. Cattails serve as blackbird habitat, so it is in the sunflower producer’s best interest to cut them down or spray herbicides to get rid of them as much as possible. Visit www.ag.ndsu.edu/weeds/weed-control-guides/nd-weed-control-guide-1 for more information on using herbicides.

Sunflower Oil Exports Increase

U.S. sunflower oil exports in the first eight months of the marketing year stand at 31,636 metric tons (MT) an increase of 10% from the same time a year ago. Increased demand in Canada is the leading factor to the growth in exports. Canada is the top importer of U.S. sunflower oil. From October 2021 to May 2022, Canada imported 22,748 MT of sunflower oil, compared to 16,275 MT from October 2020 to May 2021 representing a 40% increase for the same time period. Mexico is the second leading importer of U.S. sunflower oil; Mexico has imported 4,620 MT of sunflower oil so far this marketing year, which is down slightly from the same time frame a year ago.

Upcoming Events

August 25, 2022 - NSA High Plains Committee Meeting; Goodland, KS
January 11-12, 2023 - NSA Research Forum, Holiday Inn; Fargo, ND

Markets at a Glance

Weekly Prices Recorded on Monday, July 18, 2022 ($/CWT)

	Deliver	Last Year	Last Week	This Week	Change	2022 NEW Crop
Chicago Oil	Nearby	66.69	65.21	63.20	-2.01	60.88
West Fargo, ND	NuSun	29.15	33.00	28.50	-4.50	26.40
West Fargo, ND	High Oleic	29.15	36.00	34.50	-1.50	27.65
Enderlin, ND	NuSun	29.40	31.50	29.00	-2.50	27.35
Enderlin, ND	High Oleic	29.40	36.00	34.50	-1.50	28.35
Lamar, CO	High Oleic	27.00	39.75	36.75	-3.00	28.00

U.S. CRUDE OIL VALUES recorded on Monday, July 18, 2022
(dollars per 100 lb. internal U.S. locations)

	Last Year	Last Week	This Week	Change
Soybean Oil	94.69	74.22	73.70	-.52
Cotton Oil (pbsy)	104.69	103.72	103.20	-.52
Corn Oil	84.00	151.00	151.00	NC

Prices recorded here are believed to be reliable at the time of posting. All prices are subject to change. Contact these facilities for complete market details.

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