Operating context

External Environment

• In 2020-21, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Canadian Grain Commission resources were focused primarily on critical services including inspection and licensing, supporting producers through the Harvest Sample Program, adapting the workplace to support remote work, and implementing new approaches to provide mandated services while ensuring the safety of employees. As provinces announced plans to reopen and gradually lift public health restrictions, the Canadian Grain Commission re-established services that had been paused due to pandemic and was able to resume most research activities by the end of the 2020-21 fiscal year. The Canadian Grain Commission also continued to undertake the necessary steps to transition towards a flexible work environment that meets current operational needs and delivers on its strategic priorities and program commitments.
• Moving forward, the Canadian Grain Commission will continue to draw on the innovative practices adopted during the pandemic and integrate these into the Canadian Grain Commission’s post-pandemic operating environment and vision for the future of work. The Canadian Grain Commission will continue to support employees to effectively complete their assigned tasks in the remote workplace, laboratory, or licensed terminal elevators through strategies designed to ensure the health and safety of all employees. In June 2021, the Canadian Grain Commission established a temporary position - a Future of Work Director to lead a project team tasked with creating a plan to support the Canadian Grain Commission’s transition towards a modern workplace that puts employee experiences and quality of service at the core. This focused work addresses short-term reintegration needs as well as supports the longer-term strategies including modifying workspaces, establishing a framework for re-occupancy, virtual work strategy, and long-term facility decisions. The overall goal of the Future of Work initiative is to effectively achieve the Canadian Grain Commission’s mandate through an engaged, dynamic, empowered and healthy workforce using advanced and innovative digital services and technology and being supported by optimal infrastructure.
• The Canadian grain sector has experienced a period of significant transformation within the past 10 years including the ending of the Canadian Wheat Board’s single desk for wheat and barley marketing in 2012 and the transfer of inward inspection and weighing services from the Canadian Grain Commission to the private sector in 2013. Grain companies with grain elevators on the prairies have consolidated significantly, and investment spending related to grain handling facilities and grain processing facilities has occurred. As a result, the Canadian Grain Commission continues to experience an increase in licensing demands for all four classes of licences^{Footnote 1}.
• Although grain production can vary from year-to-year due to environmental conditions, the trend for Canadian grain production has been increasing due to new technologies and agronomic practices. In turn, this has increased export volumes and the demand for Canadian Grain Commission service delivery and documentation. The 10-year average for Canadian grain production from 2010-11 to 2019-20 was 79.16 MMT, whereas production was 94.68 MMT tonnes in crop year 2019-20 and forecast to be 98.97 MMT in crop year 2020-21. The recent 5-year average (2016-17 to 2020-21) of 92.12 MMT was 16 percent higher than the previous 5-year average (2010-11 to 2014-15) of 79.12 MMT. This growth has increased the demand on Canadian Grain Commission inspection and weighing programs resulting in, for example, significant overtime and travel within inspection services. The Canadian Grain Commission faces further pressures to ensure efficient and effective analytical services and testing, and a reliable grain quality assurance system. Factors that have contributed to the increase in grain production include:
  • advanced seeding technologies,
  • increased understanding of seeding and fertilizer rates,
  • advancements with respect to crop protection products,
  • technologies for optimal application related to fertilizers and crop protection products to maximize yield potential,
  • research and development advances in crop varieties including disease resistance and improved quality and yield,
  • improved producer management techniques (e.g., tile drainage, irrigation systems, and crop rotation practices based on existing environmental factors to ncrease yield potential), and
  • changing tillage practices
• While total area of grain production in Canada has remained consistent over time, a change in comparative acreage of crops has also occurred. Increased crop production and changes in the relative acreage of different crops have resulted in changes related to the ultimate end-use of Canadian grains. An increase in Canadian processing facilities has facilitated the growth in Canadian grain exports and domestic processing of Canadian grain. For example, Canadian grain exports from Canadian Grain Commission-licensed grain elevators averaged 40.86 MMT between crop years 2011-12 to 2020-21, whereas exports were 50.79 MMT in crop year 2020-21, 44.26 MMT in 2019-20 and 44.48 MMT in crop year 2018-19. Despite record production in the 2020-21 crop year, total carry-out stocks for all principal field crops dropped to their lowest level in eight years, due to these record exports.
• However, in the 2021-22 crop year, total field crop production is forecast to be 71.84 MMT, which is a 27 percent decrease from 98.48 MMT in 2020-21. Lower production has been driven by ongoing drought conditions in Western Canada, which worsened considerably throughout July, with most of the Canadian prairie growing region experiencing record low levels of precipitation and record-breaking temperatures. By the end of July 2021, 74 percent of the Canadian agricultural area was classified as abnormally dry or in drought. These conditions have put pressure on grain producers and buyers alike, as the amount of grain harvested by producers has fallen short of contracted grain volumes. This year has emphasized the issues that Canadian grain sector faces because of climate change. Extreme weather events and other environmental impacts including water availability and quality, soil health, and biodiversity are projected to become more severe and costly for the sector in the decades ahead, highlighting the importance of taking action to adopt innovative and sustainable practices and technologies on Canadian farms to improve their climate resiliency.