The Manitoba Advantage in Oats

Manitoba produced 22.4 per cent of Canada's oats in 2022, making it the country's second-largest oat producer after Saskatchewan. There is a long and successful history of oat processing in Manitoba, with a number of plants in operation producing oat products for human and animal consumption markets.

 

Manitoba's Oat Industry

• Manitoba procuced almost 1.2 million tonnes of oats in 2022. 
• The United States is the primary export market for raw and milled oats, followed by Mexico.
• The province generated $153 million in 2021 and $173 million in 2022 by exporting oat seeds.
• Manitoba generated $328 million as farm cash receipts in 2022.
• In 2021, the average yield for oats was 70.40 bushels per acre. Yields for 2021 were substantially below average due to an extreme lack of moisture.

Market and Consumer Trends

In the coming years, Asian markets are expected to drive oat consumption. Consumers in Asia are adopting Western diets and health trends due to the growing affluent population and rising disposable income. As the second-largest producer and the leading global exporter of oats, Canada is well-positioned to supply Asia with high-quality, safe, nutritious, value-added processed oats. In some markets, however, market access issues are a roadblock. Due to the intense drought in 2021, oat prices started to rise as supplies began to run low, but strong production for the 2022 season then brought prices back down to near where they were prior to the 2021 drought.

Additionally, oat milk is gaining traction in North America as a new dairy alternative product. Protein content in oats varies from 10.5 to 17.0 per cent depending on weather and variety (hulled or hull-less). Today, the global food industry offers oat protein concentrates, but there is potential to develop oat protein ingredients with higher protein contents above 60 per cent.

Manitoba market prices for grains and oilseeds can be found here.