Pulses have been planted to maximum capacity in parts of South Australia driven by a global supply shortage of lentils.

The total area planted to pulses in the state is up 20 per cent on last year with over 100,000 hectares of lentils sown throughout the state this season.

The total area sown to faba beans is up 30 per cent on last year, with chickpeas and vetch planting's also on the rise.

Mary Raynes from Pulse Australia said nearly half the area of lentils grown on the Eyre Peninsula is at maximum capacity for the crop; any more and farmers could jeopardise the value of their harvest.

"If growers plant anymore in their farming systems they won't have the ability to get on and harvest, and get the good quality grain for the export market," she said.

Lentil prices have doubled over the last three years as a drought in India shrinks the global supply.

Canada, a major global producer of lentils, is struggling to keep up with the demand for high quality produce.

Ms Raynes said India is an exporter turned importer of lentils after three poor seasons forced them to look overseas to fill demand.

"Then you look at Canada. Canada has also has their own misfortune in terms of having a wet harvest, and they have also had the logistical challenges of getting grain onto the freight terminal."

Australian growers are making the most of the opportunity, increasing their market share in the global lentil and pulse trade and exporting to major destinations in the Middle East and India.

Ms Raynes said lentils are currently a high reward commodity for growers.

"The price for lentils is very strong, very bullish at the moment," she said.

"In August it was around $990 and it is quite attractive in terms of the gross margins and ROI (return on investment)," she said.

In October 2012 lentils were sold for $415 a tonne. That price has risen dramatically and was close to $1000 a tonne at the end of August 2015. Listen Duration: 3 minutes 56 seconds 3 m 56 s Listen Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Mary Raynes from Pulse Australia describes the expansion of lentil plantings across South Australia ( James Jooste ) Download 1.8 MB

Growers are also capitalising on an above average season across the mid north and west of South Australia to make the most of the current demand. Lentil plantings have increased five per cent on last year.

New wheat varieties are being met with excitement by farmers looking at higher yielding grains for 2016 ( James Jooste )

New wheat varieties

According to wheat breeders AGT, the 2016 national release of the new variety Scepter, will eventually see it overtake the popular variety Mace as the most commonly sown variety in Australia.

Demand for the grain from growers and retailers has driven strong competition and anticipation around access to the first release of the product. Listen Duration: 4 minutes 39 seconds 4 m 39 s Listen Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Higher yielding wheat varieties in demand on South Australian wheat belt ( James Jooste ) Download 2.1 MB

AGT said they have identified Scepter as a higher yielding grain than Mace, the main driver for growers when it comes to making a decision on sowing a new variety.

Hayden Kuchel from AGT said they have stopped taking new seed orders because of the current lack of supply.

"Seed availability of new varieties is always an issue that you have got to try and get right," he said.

"We've tried our hardest. We actually identified Scepter about three years ago as unbelievably high yielding really early in the breeding program, and we've gone from a handful of seed to about three or four thousand tonne of seed in two years.

"It means there is a fair bit available, however the interest is so high our affiliate seed growers have said look, we think we've taken more orders than we have seeds, so we are going to put a pause on it," he said.

Canola bounces back after terrible year

A 30 per cent decline in canola planting's across South Australia has knocked some of the September brightness off the landscape and had a significant impact on the price and production of the crop.

Virus and insect issues plagued the 2014 season for growers, while soft prices at the start of 2015 and poor subsoil moisture made the decision easy for some to swap the brassica for pulse crops.

Ms Raynes said farmers took the opportunity to rotate out of canola for pulses, particularly on the Eyre Peninsula with a significant increase in lentil plantings.

As a result grain traders have a buoyant outlook on price for canola in export markets.

Chris Heinjus from Rural Directions said the supply shock in canola will have a positive impact for growers who stuck with the oilseed.

"Canola is one of the things I've had a positive view on for quite sometime," he said.

"I just don't think we've got the supply in Australia for what people were expecting, so the mid $550 is where we are heading I think.

"There's just not the amount of yellow paddocks sitting around compared to what there was 12 months ago."