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CANOLA yields and quality were very variable this season and so was the dollar return depending when it was offloaded.

Even though there were areas producing some pretty good returns especially east of the Newell Highway, western crops might have been more disappointing, according to Ag Scientia analyst Lloyd George, Melbourne

The price per tonne at the end of trading in December delivered Newcastle was $533 a tonne, up on where it was at the same time in 2014.

Wellington grain merchant, supplying MSM Milling for the first time this year, Michael White of Michael White and Company said the Wellington receivals were so varied it was a “storer’s nightmare”.

“We were changing bins all the time,” he said.

“It’s been the most varied season I’ve ever experienced as a grower and merchant.

“No two loads either within a paddock or on a property were the same.”

At Wellington oil content varied from 33 to 45 per cent with most seed making from 38pc to 42pc.

However, test weight was “pretty poor” Mr White said.

“Here it varied from 55 to 65 kilograms a hectolitre with the majority in the low 60s,” he said.

In a good year the test weight would average 65kg/hl.

Mr White said he also experienced a wide fluctuation in market prices this year.

“We started off at about $110/t better off than last year, but ended at around $100/t better off,” he said.

Mr George calculated the price at the same time in 2014 at $478/t, which was $55/t below this season.

“The lows of last year (2014) did get down to $430/t but it didn’t spend a huge amount of time there either,” he said.

“The lowest was in September last year (2014) but for most of the season, particularly at harvest, the price would have been up and around the higher $470/t mark.”

This season the new crop started at $550/t in the middle of September and hit a high of $563/t in October.

“It went to $566/t for a couple for weeks and then dropped away to $535/t,” Mr George said.

“And that’s largely because of global soybean prices coming down and canola dropping with that.”

Mr George said canola was no different to a lot of grain prices at the moment.

“Global canola production is well back on last year, but at the end of the day it’s an oilseed and it’s substitutable and the world is awash with soy beans, the major global oilseed.

“The Canadian canola crop turned out to be a lot bigger than initially estimated.”

He said there was no domestic shortage so local crushers were able to fill their needs.

MSM Milling general manager – commercial Charlie Aldersey, Manildra, said east and west Australian growing areas had exportable surpluses of seed this season.

“The major market in a year like this is Europe, so if we want to buy canola seed from growers we’ve got to compete against the exporters,” he said.

“So we pay at least export parity and this creates a floor into the market.”

He said the port price had been trading at $520/t to $570/t this year.

“As we got into harvest proper the price had come down.

“Generally speaking international prices had come down too.”

Mr Aldersey said MSM Milling had experienced a big variation in quality of seed for their oil and meal processing and value-adding enterprise.

“In September it looked to be an absolute bumper harvest, but then the dryer October and later the wet harvest did reduce yields and increased the variability.

“Some growers were lucky they got timely rain while others were unlucky and were under storms right at harvest.”