Alberta farmers are shaking up their planting strategies — and sending a clear message: adaptability is the new productivity.
Wheat is on the rise, canola is pulling back, and lentils and dry peas are starting to elbow their way into more rotations, according to new data from Statistics Canada. The 2025 crop year will be anything but business as usual in Alberta, as producers recalibrate around profitability, drought resilience, and global demand signals.
Across the province, wheat is regaining dominance, with farmers expecting to plant 6.6% more wheat than last year, totalling 8.4 million acres. Most of that is driven by a surge in spring wheat, which is up 8.0% to 7 million acres — a response to strong international demand and a return to fundamentals in uncertain times.
But perhaps the biggest plot twist? Canola — long the golden child of Prairie agriculture — is taking a hit. Alberta producers plan to seed 4.3% less canola in 2025, bringing acreage down to 6.1 million. That’s a marked shift, driven by a combination of input costs, tight moisture margins, and flagging returns.
Barley is also slipping in Alberta, with acreage expected to fall 5.6% to 3.3 million acres. That’s a signal that livestock feed markets are tightening and growers are looking for more lucrative options.
One of those options appears to be dry peas, where Alberta’s acreage is forecast to rise — echoing a national jump of 9.5% to 3.5 million acres. Strong returns and improved varieties are helping dry peas reclaim space in Prairie rotations.
Meanwhile, lentils are quietly gaining ground in Alberta — bucking a national decline. Farmers in the province plan to increase lentil area by 4.1%, topping 582,900 acres, even as Saskatchewan, the usual leader, pulls back slightly.
And while grain corn still isn’t king in Alberta, momentum is building in the West. With Ontario and Manitoba ramping up acres, corn’s westward creep could soon be more than a trend.
