'A huge crop with nothing in it': Fort Macleod farmer disappointed with 2022 harvest

While last year, consistently hot and dry weather combined to create one of the worst harvests on record in Alberta, cooler and wetter weather this summer gave farmers hope things would be different come fall. 

However, many are leaving the fields this season feeling disappointed with their harvest.

Stephen Vandervalk farms malt barley and canola, among other crops, just outside of Fort Macleod.

He says while they expected a bad harvest last year, this year’s bad harvest came as a surprise.

"We started off super dry, then we got some rain and the crops looked absolutely fantastic," Vandervalk said. "Then it just dried out for the last five weeks before harvest. Big straw crop in other words – it was a huge crop with nothing in it."

Across southern Alberta, crop yields have been mixed.

"What I'm hearing from people and members is basically that it is all over the board," Alberta Federation of Agriculture president Lynn Jacobson said.

About 75 per cent of major crops in southern Alberta have now been harvested, according to the province.

"Most of the wheats, canola, peas –  those types of crops are done. Some of the third cutting is still out there yet for hay," says Jacobson.

Lower-than-expected yields are just one of the concerns farmers like Vandervalk have.

He says inflation and supply chain issues have compounded to make this one of the expensive harvests ever.

"You name it, it's up," Vandervalk said. "You couldn't get parts. So sometimes, people had combines broken down because they're missing a simple $20 part and they couldn't get it. Or, a sensor wasn't working and they couldn't get it fixed."

He says he can only hope next year's harvest will boast higher yields and be cheaper to produce.